Champions League 2025-2026 draw: PSG 'fights' Bayern Munich, Barca

Late on August 28, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) conducted the draw for the UEFA Champions League group stage.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the one who draws the teams in pot 1 of the UEFA Champions League - Photo: REUTERS

The Champions League group stage draw has created many interesting matches such as Bayern Munich will meet Chelsea, PSG, Arsenal. Real Madrid will face Man City, Liverpool, Juventus or Barca will face PSG...

PSG in trouble

Among the giants, PSG is the team with the most disadvantageous draw results when the reigning Champions League champion has to face Bayern Munich, Barca, Atalanta, Leverkusen, Tottenham, Sporting, Newcastle, and Bilbao.

These are all opponents that are not easy to play against for PSG. While Bayern Munich and Barca are considered "on the same level" as PSG, Atalanta, Leverkusen, Tottenham, Sporting, Newcastle, and Bilbao are not weak.

Chelsea also have a tough draw as they have to face Bayern Munich, Barca, Benfica, Atalanta, Ajax, Napoli, Pafos, and Qarabag. This will be a big challenge for the reigning FIFA Club World Cup 2025 champions. Of the above opponents, only Pafos and Qarabag are not up to the mark with Chelsea.

Similarly, Real Madrid also had a difficult draw, facing Man City, Liverpool, Juventus, Benfica, Marseille, Olympiacos, Monaco and Kairat. Of Real Madrid's opponents, only Kairat is really easy to play. However, Real Madrid will not feel comfortable flying thousands of kilometers to Central Asia to play Kairat.

German champions Bayern Munich face a tough test in the group stage as they face Chelsea, PSG, Arsenal, Club Brugge, Sporting, PSV, Union SG and Pafos. Apart from the underdogs Union SG and Pafos, the rest of the opponents are not easy to bully.

View of the 2025-2026 Champions League draw ceremony - Photo: REUTERS

Champions League format 2025-2026

The format of this season's Champions League is similar to last year's: the 36 teams will not be divided into groups. Instead, each team will play 8 matches against 8 different opponents (4 home, 4 away). The eight opponents will be drawn randomly based on seeding (36 teams are divided into 4 seeding groups).

After the matches in the above method, the clubs will be ranked based on the results of the matches (8 matches). Of which, the top 8 clubs will qualify for the round of 16. The next 16 clubs (from 9 to 24) will participate in the play-off round with 2 home and away matches to determine the remaining 8 places to participate in the round of 16.

The eight play-off losers will be relegated to the Europa League. The remaining clubs (25 to 36) will be eliminated. From the round of 16, the teams will play in a knockout format with one home and one away match. The 2025-2026 UEFA Champions League final will take place on May 30, at Puskas Arena, Budapest (Hungary).

The 2025-2026 Champions League group stage will begin on September 16.

HOAI DU

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/boc-tham-champions-league-2025-2026-psg-dai-chien-bayern-munich-barca-20250829000333493.htm