The UEFA Champions League group stage draw got here by with the high-profile matchups that followers needed to see.

Group B is just jaw-dropping, with 4 continental powers — Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, Porto and AC Milan — whereas match favorites Manchester Metropolis and Paris Saint-Germain have been drawn collectively in Group A. Now all that is left is for Cristiano Ronaldo to truly switch to Manchester Metropolis as rumors recommend. If he does, it will arrange a tasty showdown towards PSG’s Lionel Messi and Neymar. It is Champions League trophy or bust for each of these golf equipment.

Bayern Munich (Germany) will face Barcelona (Spain) and Chelsea (England) will lock horns with Juventus (Italy) within the different eye-catching matchups from the draw. Manchester United and Spain’s Villarreal may even meet once more in a rematch of the 2021 Europa League closing.

Lastly, in a extremely inconceivable situation, Inter Milan (Italy), Actual Madrid (Spain) and Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) have been drawn into the identical group for the second straight version. 

All group-stage matches can be performed within the six prescheduled home windows: Sept. 14-15, Sept. 28-29, Oct. 19-20, Nov. 2-3, Nov. 23-24 and Dec. 7-8.

Champions League draw teams

Group A

Pot 1: Manchester Metropolis (England)
Pot 2: Paris Saint-Germain (France)
Pot 3: RB Leipzig (Germany)
Pot 4: Membership Brugge (Belgium)

Group B

Pot 1: Atletico Madrid (Spain)
Pot 2: Liverpool (England)
Pot 3: Porto (Portugal)
Pot 4: AC Milan (Italy)

Group C

Pot 1: Sporting CP (Portugal)
Pot 2: Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
Pot 3: Ajax (Netherlands)
Pot 4: Besiktas (Turkey)

Group D

Pot 1: Inter Milan (Italy)
Pot 2: Actual Madrid (Spain)
Pot 3: Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
Pot 4: Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova)

Group E

Pot 1: Bayern Munich (Germany)
Pot 2: FC Barcelona (Spain)
Pot 3: Benfica (Portugal)
Pot 4: Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine)

Group F

Pot 1: Villarreal (Spain)
Pot 2: Manchester United (England)
Pot 3: Atalanta (Italy)
Pot 4: BSC Younger Boys (Switzerland)

Group G

Pot 1: LOSC Lille (France)
Pot 2: Sevilla (Spain)
Pot 3: RB Salzburg (Austria)
Pot 4: VfL Wolfsburg (Germany)

Group H

Pot 1: Chelsea (England)
Pot 2: Juventus (Italy)
Pot 3: Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia)
Pot 4: Malmo FF (Sweden)

Champions League draw updates

All occasions ET

1:17 p.m.: The Coaches of the 12 months and the Gamers of the 12 months have been named to wrap up the present:

• Participant of the 12 months: Males – Jorginho (Chelsea), Ladies – Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona)
• Coach of the 12 months: Males – Thomas Tuchel (Chelsea), Ladies – Lluís Cortes (FC Barcelona)

1:07 p.m.: POT 4 – The ultimate eight groups will fill out the remainder of the teams. The primary membership drawn is BSC Younger Boys.

1:04 p.m.: Now it is time for the highest forwards from final 12 months’s UEFA Champions League match:

• Forwards: Males – Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund), Ladies – Jennifer Hermoso (FC Barcelona)

12:56 p.m.: POT 3 – The subsequent eight groups can be positioned. Shakhtar have been drawn first.

12:54 p.m.: Now we have our two Midfielders of the 12 months:

• Midfielders: Males – N’Golo Kante (Chelsea), Ladies – Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona)

12:48 p.m.: Man Metropolis and PSG are in the identical group! If Ronaldo heads to Man Metropolis, that units up a juicy matchup towards Lionel Messi and Neymar. They’d should play twice (dwelling and away).

12:44 p.m.: POT 2 – Time for the Pot 2 draw. Issues are shifting quick now. Borussia Dortmund are the primary title. Keep in mind, now the restrictions kick in. Groups from the identical nation cannot be in the identical group and the TV pairings should be revered (if one workforce from the pairings lands in Teams A-D, then the opposite HAS to enter Group E-H and vice versa).

12:42 p.m.: Now a break for the Defender of the 12 months awards:

• Defenders: Males – Ruben Dias (Manchester Metropolis), Ladies – Irene Paredes (ex-Paris Saint-Germain)

12:38 p.m.: POT 1 – Manchester Metropolis is the primary title drawn from Pot 1. These groups will go in every out there group (so as) as they’re drawn. Ivanovic is dealing with all of the Pot 1 groups. Chelsea is the final workforce drawn into Group H.

12:37 p.m.: We’re lastly seeing membership logos. They’re working by all of the groups in Pot 1. Seems to be like we’ll be beginning there.

12:32 p.m.: UEFA’s Giorgio Marchetti takes the stage. He is the acquainted face who leads the draw. Now there is a video explaining the way it all works. There are computer systems concerned.

12:28 p.m.: It is time for one of many awards. Goalkeepers go first. 

• Goalkeepers: Males – Edouard Mendy (Chelsea), Ladies – Sandra Paños (FC Barcelona)

12:26 p.m.: Wow. Neat little tidbit: Ivanovic scored the primary aim within the St. Petersburg stadium that can host the ultimate. It opened in 2017 prematurely of the 2018 World Cup.

12:21 p.m.: Subsequent up on this system is the introduction for 2 ex-Chelsea gamers serving to to conduct the draw: defender Branislav Ivanovic and Michael Essien.

12:08 p.m.: UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin up on the stage. He’ll acknowledge those that helped Christian Eriksen survive cardiac arrest on the Euros, together with captain Simon Kjaer. In a video message Kjaer stated: “I settle for this award with my workforce and solely with my workforce.” The medical workers are in Istanbul and so they’re all strolling as much as the stage to just accept the awards.

12:02 p.m.: OK. The present is beginning. Stand by for updates. They began out with a spotlight sizzle from final season with empty stadiums. Hopefully, that footage is completely archived.

11:45 a.m.: A lot for everybody being on the draw. However it seems to be like AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund may have illustration:

11:33 a.m.: We’re all Sheriff followers on this Champions League. First time within the Champions League group stage. Largest underdogs.

11:15 a.m.: You understand we’ll be getting a second or two similar to the one Francesco shares right here:

9:06 a.m.: This is a subplot that everybody may even be being attentive to in Istanbul. With the large golf equipment current for the draw, there may be most likely some negotiating that can be occurring:

7:11 a.m.: This is our Champions League draw presenter for right now:

How the group stage draw labored

The 32 groups have been divided into 4 pots containing eight groups every. A reputation from every pot was drawn for every of Group A by Group H.

The eight groups in Pot 1 have been predetermined: The pot consisted of the Champions League holders (Chelsea), the Europa League holders (Villarreal CF) and the champions of the highest six-ranked associations: Spain (Atletico Madrid), England (Manchester Metropolis), Germany (Bayern Munich), Italy (Inter Milan), France (Lille), and Portugal (Sporting CP).

The remainder of the pots have been damaged out primarily based on every membership’s UEFA membership coefficients. Right here was the listing of groups in every pot within the order of their coefficient rating.

Pot 1

• Bayern Munich (Germany) – 134
• Manchester Metropolis (England) – 125
• Atlético Madrid (Spain) – 115
• Chelsea (England) – 98
• Villarreal (Spain / UEFA Europa League holders) – 63
• Inter Milan (Italy) – 53
• Sporting CP (Portugal) – 45.5
• LOSC Lille (France) – 14

Pot 2

• Actual Madrid (Spain) – 127
• FC Barcelona (Spain) – 122
• Juventus (Italy) – 120
• Manchester United (England) – 113
• Paris Saint-Germain (France) – 113
• Liverpool (England) – 101
• Sevilla (Spain) – 98
• Borussia Dortmund (Germany) – 90

Pot 3

• FC Porto (Portugal) – 87
• Ajax (Netherlands) – 82.5
• Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) – 79
• RB Leipzig (Germany) – 66
• RB Salzburg (Austria) – 59
• Benfica (Portugal) – 58
• Atalanta (Italy) – 50.5
• Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia) – 50

Pot 4

• Besiktas (Turkey) – 49
• Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) – 47
• Membership Brugge (Belgium) – 35.5
• BSC Younger Boys (Switzerland) – 35
• AC Milan (Italy) – 31
• Malmo FF (Sweden) – 18.5
• VfL Wolfsburg (Germany) – 14.5
• Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova) – 14.5

Draw Restrictions: Groups weren’t allowed to be drawn into teams towards groups from their very own nation. On high of that, to maximise tv audiences, UEFA goes a step additional to ensure that sure groups from the identical nation aren’t drawn into teams that play on the identical day. That method Barcelona and Actual Madrid, for instance, do not play on the similar time, which might cannibalize the TV viewers in Spain, not to mention around the globe.

This is how UEFA pulled this off: Previous to the draw, organizers recognized the groups they needed to make sure play on separate days. If a kind of groups was drawn into Teams A-D, then the opposite workforce needed to be drawn into one in all Teams E-H, thus guaranteeing the 2 groups by no means play on the identical day. The identical was true if one of many flagged groups was drawn in Teams E-H (the opposite workforce then needed to be drawn in one in all Teams A-D). Listed here are the groups that UEFA introduced wouldn’t be enjoying on the identical day: 

• England: Chelsea & Manchester Metropolis
• England: Manchester United & Liverpool
• France: LOSC Lille & Paris Saint-Germain
• Germany: Bayern Munich & Borussia Dortmund
• Germany: RB Leipzig & VfL Wolfsburg
• Italy: Inter Milan & Juventus
• Italy: Atalanta & AC Milan
• Portugal: Porto & Benfica
• Spain: Actual Madrid & Barcelona
• Spain: Atlético Madrid & Sevilla
• Ukraine: Shakhtar Donetsk & Dynamo Kiev

UEFA Awards

This is the listing of awards that have been handed out in Istanbul primarily based on final 12 months’s Males’s and Ladies’s UEFA Champions League seasons (2020-2021):

Males’s Participant of the 12 months

• Winner: Jorginho (Chelsea)
• Runners-up: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester Metropolis), N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)

Males’s Goalkeeper of the 12 months

• Winner: Édouard Mendy (Chelsea)
• Runners-up: Thibaut Courtois (Actual Madrid), Ederson (Manchester Metropolis)

Males’s Defender of the 12 months

• Winner: Rúben Dias (Manchester Metropolis)
• Runners-up: César Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea)

Males’s Midfielder of the 12 months

• Winner: N’Golo Kanté (Chelsea)
• Runners-up: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester Metropolis), Jorginho (Chelsea)

Males’s Ahead of the 12 months

• Winner: Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)
• Runners-up: Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

Males’s Coach of the 12 months

• Winner: Thomas Tuchel (Chelsea)
• Runners-up: Josep Guardiola (Manchester Metropolis), Roberto Mancini (Italy)

Ladies’s Participant of the 12 months

• Winner: Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona)
• Runners-up: Jennifer Hermoso (FC Barcelona), Lieke Martens (FC Barcelona)

Ladies’s Goalkeeper of the 12 months

• Winner: Sandra Paños (FC Barcelona)
• Runners-up: Ann-Katrin Berger (Chelsea), Christiane Endler (ex-Paris Saint-Germain)

Ladies’s Defender of the 12 months

• Winner: Irene Paredes (ex-Paris Saint-Germain)
• Runners-up: Magdalena Eriksson (Chelsea), Mapi León (FC Barcelona)

Ladies’s Midfielder of the 12 months

• Winner: Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona)
• Runners-up: Aitana Bonmatí (FC Barcelona), Ji So-yun (Chelsea)

Ladies’s Ahead of the 12 months

• Winner: Jennifer Hermoso (FC Barcelona)
• Runners-up: Caroline Graham Hansen (FC Barcelona), Lieke Martens (FC Barcelona)

Ladies’s Coach of the 12 months

• Winner: Lluís Cortes (FC Barcelona)
• Runners-up: Peter Gerhardsson (Sweden), Emma Hayes (Chelsea FC Ladies)