The official calendar for the Champions League has now been published, detailing the match dates for England's top clubs Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa. Arsenal, who reached the final of the competition last season, will be drawn against two of Europe’s most storied sides – Real Madrid and Bayern Munich – during the group stage of this campaign. In addition to those high‑profile clashes, the Gunners will also face Borussia Dortmund and Napoli as they strive to secure a top‑eight finish that guarantees automatic qualification for the knockout rounds, a feat they achieved flawlessly in the previous campaign by winning every group‑stage match. Both Manchester City and Aston Villa have been allocated home fixtures against the defending champions Paris Saint‑Germain.
Villa Park’s meeting with PSG will echo the recent UEFA Super Cup, a contest that saw the French side prevail 2‑1 in Salzburg. Liverpool’s itinerary includes a challenging away trip to Inter Milan as well as a home tie with Atletico Madrid, while Manchester United are set to travel to face Diego Simeone’s Atletico in a highly anticipated encounter.
The competition’s schedule is broken down into a series of matchdays: - Matchday 1: 8‑10 September - Matchday 2: 13‑14 October - Matchday 3: 20‑21 October - Matchday 4: 3‑4 November - Matchday 5: 24‑25 November - Matchday 6: 8‑9 December - Matchday 7: 19‑20 January - Matchday 8: 27 January Following the group phase, the tournament moves into a two‑legged knockout‑phase play‑off round on 16‑17 February and again on 23‑24 February. Winners of those ties join the eight seeded clubs in the round of 16, which will be contested on 9‑10 March and 16‑17 March 2027.
The quarter‑finals are slated for 6‑7 April and 13‑14 April, the semi‑finals for 27‑28 April and 4‑5 May, and the grand finale will be held on 5 June 2027 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid. A total of 36 teams will be competing at this stage of the tournament.
Twenty‑nine of those clubs qualified directly based on their domestic league performances last season, while the remaining seven spots were filled through the qualifying rounds. The competition is now in its third year under the revised format introduced two seasons ago.
Under this system, each club plays eight group‑stage matches – two against each of four opponents drawn from four separate pots. Half of those games are hosted at the club’s home ground, the other half are played away. The top eight finishers in the league phase automatically progress to the round of 16.
Clubs that finish 25th or lower are eliminated from European competition altogether and do not drop into the Europa League. Teams placed between ninth and 24th enter the two‑legged knockout‑phase play‑offs. Those finishing between ninth and 16th are seeded and will be drawn against a team that finished between 17th and 24th, with the second leg of the tie taking place at the seeded club’s home stadium.
The eight victorious clubs from the play‑offs then join the eight seeded teams to form the round of 16 field, from which the competition proceeds through the traditional knockout rounds. The exact dates for the draw of the play‑offs have yet to be announced, but the structure remains clear: February play‑offs, March round of 16, April quarter‑finals and semi‑finals, and a June final in Spain’s capital.
The final at the Estadio Metropolitano will crown the champions of European club football for the 2026‑27 season. Fans can stay up‑to‑date with the full fixture list, live scores and exclusive analysis by downloading the Sky Sports app, which also offers a contract‑free streaming option for Premier League matches.
For those looking for extra excitement, the platform currently promotes a "Super 6" competition where participants can enter for free for a chance to win a £1 million prize.