All eyes may be on the start of the new Premier League season, but it's already time to start thinking about the UEFA Champions League too.
The league phase draw will be held this Thursday, Aug. 27, in Monaco. 36 teams will be drawn with each club playing eight games -- four home, four away -- against different opponents.
Back-to-back champions Paris Saint-Germain are amongst the 29 teams who have already booked their spot in the competition, with the remaining seven places to be determined by qualifying.
The second legs for those games will take place on Tuesday Aug. 25 and Wednesday Aug. 26.
Here is everything you need to know about the draw.
Key details:
When: Thursday, Aug. 27, at 5 p.m. BST.
Where: Monaco.
Who: 36 teams will be drawn from four pots.
How to watch UEFA Champions League draw in UK
The draw will be broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK.
ESPN will also have live updates of the event.
What teams are involved in the league phase draw?
Defending champions PSG are the team to beat once again in this year's competition. They are joined in Pot 1 by three English sides: defeated finalists Arsenal, six-time champions Liverpool and a new-look Manchester City.
Pot 1 is completed by Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atlético Madrid.
There are two more English sides in the tournament this season -- Manchester United and Aston Villa. Both appear in Pot 2 alongside the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Roma.
Napoli will likely prove the toughest test out of the Pot 3 sides, while much of Pots 3 and 4 are yet to be decided.
Celtic, Bodo/Glimt, Fenerbahce and Lyon are the most notable names looking to progress through this week's playoffs.
Pot 1
Paris Saint-Germain (France)
Bayern Munich (Germany)
Real Madrid (Spain)
Liverpool (England)
Inter Milan (Italy)
Manchester City (England)
Arsenal (England)
Barcelona (Spain)
Atlético Madrid (Spain)
Pot 2
Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
Roma (Italy)
Sporting (Portugal)
Aston Villa (England)
Porto (Portugal)
Manchester United (England)
Club Brugge (Belgium)
Real Betis (Spain)
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Pot 3
Feyenoord (Netherlands)
Lille (France)
Napoli (Italy)
RB Leipzig (Germany)
Villarreal (Spain)
Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
Galatasaray (Turkey)
Winner of Fenerbahce (Turkey) vs Lyon (France)
Pot 3 or 4
Winner of NEC Nijmegen (Netherlands) vs Bodo/Glimt (Norway)
Winner of Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) vs Viking (Norway)
Winner of Celtic (Scotland) vs LASK (Austria)
Slavia Prague (Czech Republic)
Pot 4
Winner of Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) vs Celje (Slovenia)
VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
Winner of Levski Sofia (Bulgaria) vs AEK Athens (Greece)
Como (Italy)
Lens (France)
Winner of Hapoel Be'er Sheva (Israel) vs Sabah (Azerbaijan)
How does the draw work?
The four pots, which are determined by each club's UEFA club coefficient ranking, ensure that every side will play opponents of varying quality.
Each team will play eight matches, facing two rivals from each pot -- one at home, and one away. For now, teams from the same country cannot play each other.
For example, Arsenal will face two of PSG, Bayern, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atlético, because they cannot play against Liverpool or Manchester City yet.
After each team has played eight games, the top eight teams will qualify directly to the round of 16. The next 16 sides will contest the playoff, while the remaining 12 will be eliminated altogether.
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When does the league phase start?
The action kicks off on Tuesday Sept. 8 and, after the international break, returns on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
From then, teams will be in action roughly once per fortnight until matchday six on Dec. 8 and 9.
After a Christmas break, the last two matchdays are in late January, with the final games all being played simultaneously.
Matchday 1: Sep. 8-10 2026
Matchday 2: Oct. 13-14 2026
Matchday 3: Oct. 20-21 2026
Matchday 4: Nov. 3-4 2026
Matchday 5: Nov. 24-25 2026
Matchday 6: Dec. 8-9 2026
Matchday 7: Jan. 19-20 2027
Matchday 8: Jan. 27 2027
