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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sport
Jamie Gardner

What to expect in Thursday’s Champions League draw

PA Wire

The Champions League is nearly upon us for the new 2023/24 season, as treble-winners Manchester City try to retain their crown as the kings of Europe following their 1-0 win over Inter Milan in Istanbul in June.

For the final time before the competition takes on a new format next season, 32 teams will be split into eight groups of four. Each group will contain one team from each of the four seeded pots, and clubs from the same national league will not be drawn together in the same group.

Pot 1 will consist of the Champions League winners, the Europa League winners and six domestic champions of the highest ranked leagues. The remaining pots will be decided by Uefa’s club coefficient rankings.

The final will take place at London’s Wembley Stadium on 1 June 2024. Get all the latest football betting sites offers here or sign up to bet365 using The Independent’s unique bonus code by clicking here.

When is the Champions League draw?

The draw for the group stage will take place in Monaco on Thursday 31 August, at 5pm BST.

Rodri was the matchwinner as City won the trophy in Istanbul
— (Getty Images)

Which clubs have qualified?

There are 32 clubs qualified for the Champions League group stage:

England: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United

Spain: Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Sevilla

Germany: Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Leipzig, Union Berlin

Italy: Inter Milan, Lazio, AC Milan, Napoli

France: Lens, Paris Saint-Germain

Portugal: Benfica, Porto, Braga

Netherlands: Feyenoord, PSV

Austria: Salzburg

Scotland: Celtic

Serbia: Red Star Belgrade

Ukraine: Shakhtar Donetsk

Belgium: Antwerp

Switzerland: Young Boys

Turkey: Galatasaray

Ukraine: Shakhtar Donetsk

What are the Champions League group stage dates?

Matchday 1: 19/20 September 2023

Matchday 2: 3/4 October 2023

Matchday 3: 24/25 October 2023

Matchday 4: 7/8 November 2023

Matchday 5: 28/29 November 2023

Matchday 6: 12/13 December 2023

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