Today’s draw – these are the Champions League raffle pots
Status: 10:19 a.m. | Reading time: 3 minutes
The four German teams cannot meet in the group stage of the Champions League
Source: AFP via Getty Images / FABRICE COFFRINI
The Champions League will be drawn on Thursday. See here which opponents FC Bayern, BVB, RB Leipzig and Mönchengladbach can get. One thing is already certain: a German will be Europe’s coach of the year.
Titel defenders FC Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Borussia Mönchengladbach will get their group opponents in the Champions League this Thursday (from 5 p.m.) in Geneva. In pot one are the champions of the seven best European leagues and the Europa League winners. The pots two to four are divided according to the Uefa coefficient. Borussia Mönchengladbach is one of the weakest clubs in recent years in the European Football Union’s ranking – so it could get three top clubs drawn.
Bayern must at least prepare for a very well-known and strong opponent from Pot 2. This includes Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea FC and the top Spanish clubs FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid.
Leipzig, after all a semi-finalist in the last Champions League edition, is only in pot three due to the still low Uefa coefficient, which is calculated from previous participations and results in the Champions and Europa League. This threatens at least two tough lots. There may also be a duel with Chelsea, in which the former Leipzig goalscorer Timo Werner is now playing.
Dortmund could meet ex-coach Jürgen Klopp from Liverpool FC and ex-striker Ciro Immobile from Lazio Rome.
Eight groups of four are drawn, each with one team from the four pots. German duels in the group stage are excluded.
Season starts on October 20th
The game will be played on 20./21. and 27./28. October, 3rd / 4th and 24./25. November and 1st / 2nd and 8./9. December. Due to the corona pandemic, games may also be postponed. Uefa reserves the right to extend the group stage until January 28th. If the group phase cannot be completed for “whatever reasons”, the Uefa Executive Committee will also decide on the composition of the knockout round, the umbrella association announced. The final in Istanbul is scheduled for May 29, 2021.
The lottery pots at a glance:
POT 1
- FC Bayern Munich,
- FC Sevilla
- Real Madrid
- FC Liverpool
- Juventus Turin
- Paris Saint Germain
- Zenit Saint-Petersburg
- FC Porto
POT 2
- Borussia Dortmund
- FC Barcelona
- Atletico Madrid
- Manchester City
- Manchester United
- Shakhtar Donetsk
- FC Chelsea
- ajax Amsterdam
POT 3
- RB Leipzig
- Dynamo Kiev
- Red Bull Salzburg
- Inter Milan
- Olympiakos, Piraeus
- Lazio Rom
- FK Krasnodar
- Atalanta Bergamo
POT 4
- Borussia Monchengladbach
- Moscow locomotive
- Olympique Marseille
- Club Bruges
- Istanbul Basaksehir
- FC Midtjylland
- Rennes stadium
- Ferencvaros Budapest
Who will succeed Virgil van Dijk and Jürgen Klopp?
Before the draw begins, Uefa will announce who will succeed Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk as Europe’s Footballer of the Year. The two Munich triple winners Manuel Neuer and Robert Lewandowski as well as the Belgian Kevin De Bruyne from Manchester City are available for election. Lewandowski is the favorite for the award.
Should Neuer receive an award, the national goalkeeper would be the first German professional since Matthias Sammer, who was awarded the Ballon d’Or in 1996. The European Football Union has been organizing the award in its current form since 2011. In 2014, Neuer finished second behind Ronaldo and ahead of his then Bayern team-mate Arjen Robben. Lewandowski from Poland would be the first Bundesliga professional since Franck Ribéry, who was honored in 2013 after the first triple season in Munich.
The coach of the year will also be announced during the draw. Only Germans have been nominated: Bayern coach Hans-Dieter Flick, last year’s winner Jürgen Klopp from Liverpool FC and Leipzig’s Julian Nagelsmann.
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