Who Man City can face in Champions League as UEFA confirm draw pots

The draw for the league stage of the Champions League takes place this evening

Manchester City are in the league phase draw for the Champions League(Image: FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)

The draw for the Champions League league phase will take place this afternoon.

Manchester City secured their place in this season's competition after they finished in the Premier League last season. Also qualified through the English top-four were champions Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea.

Fifth-placed Newcastle United crept in as they benefited from the extra qualifying spot awarded to English clubs for their collective good performance in Europe last term; meanwhile, Europa League winners Tottenham Hotspur will be involved too.

Two shocks on the British Isles in that final qualifying round were the exits of Celtic and Rangers. Brendan Rodgers' side were beaten by Kazakhstan outfit Kairat Almaty on penalties, while Rangers were thumped 9-1 on aggregate by Club Brugge.

And below is everything City supporters need to know about this evening's draw.

Who has qualified for the league phase?

This is the final list of all 36 clubs involved in the Champions League 2025/26 league phase and how they qualified:

2024/25 UEFA Champions League winners: Paris Saint-Germain2024/25 UEFA Europa League winners: Tottenham HotspurEngland: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, ChelseaItaly: Napoli, Inter Milan, Atalanta, JuventusSpain: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Athletic ClubGermany: Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Borussia DortmundFrance: Marseille, MonacoNetherlands: PSV Eindhoven, AjaxPortugal: Sporting CPBelgium: Union Saint-GilloiseTurkiye: GalatasarayCzechia: Slavia Praha Champions League winner rebalancing: OlympiacosEuropean Performance Spots: Newcastle United, VillarrealQualifying rounds – champions path: Bodo/Glimt, FC Copenhagen, Kairat Almaty, Pafos, QarabagQualifying rounds – league path: Benfica, Club Brugge

How does the Champions League draw and pot system work?

Clubs from the same country cannot face each other and can play a maximum of two clubs from another country.

The fixtures are split into teams playing two opponents from each of the four pots, which are determined by UEFA coefficient - the record of each club in European competition over the last five years.

Based on this system, this is how the four pots shape up for the draw.

Pot 1: Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona.

Pot 2: Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Benfica, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Eintracht Frankfurt, Club Brugge.

Pot 3: Tottenham, PSV, Ajax, Napoli, Sporting CP, Olympiacos, Slavia Prague, Bodo/Glimt, Marseille.

Pot 4: Copenhagen, Monaco, Galatasaray, Union Saint-Gilloise, Qarabag, Athletic Club, Newcastle, Pafos, Kairat.

The draw itself will start with pot one, so for example, City's name is picked out first, UEFA's automated system will then place them against two teams from each pot, equalling eight opponents in total.

They will play one team from each pot at the Etihad Stadium and the other from each pot away from home.