The Champions League draw has always been a much-anticipated event for fans of the qualified sides.
Football devotees have always been eager to discover which European giants they will be facing, and which historic cities they can look forward to visiting, meaning that despite it making for predictably bland viewing, it holds considerable cache.
But this year’s draw, which takes place on Thursday, is especially momentous, as it will be the first to decide teams’ fixture lists under a brand new format that does away with the traditional group stage.
Instead, the new format – known as the “league phase” – will see each team face eight different sides, with results contributing to an overall league rather than the eight-group format adopted by previous tournaments.
When is the Champions League draw and how can I watch it?
The draw for the new league phase will take place on Thursday, 28 August at 5pm BST.
It will be live streamed on both UEFA and BBC Sport’s websites.
The Europa League and Conference League draws will take place the following day at midday and 1 30pm respectively.
How does the new Champions League format work?
UEFA’s new league phase format is a major change from the traditional 32-team group stage tournament of old.
The Champions League will now include 36 sides – as opposed to the previous 32 – all of which will play in one league.
They will play eight games – four home, four away – against eight different opponents.
After their league matches, the teams to finish in the top eight will automatically proceed into knockout stages, the first round of which is the last 16.
At the other end of the table, the 14 sides that finish the league phase in places 25th or lower will be knocked out from the tournament altogether.
Unlike the old format, these sides will have no route to either the Europa League or the Conference League.
Meanwhile, the teams that finish between ninth and 24th will be entered into a playoff round, where the highest finisher will play the lowest, the second highest plays the second lowest, and so on.
In this play-off round, teams will play their opponent in home and away fixtures, with the winner on aggregate progressing through to the last 16.
How will the Champions League draw work?
As in previous tournaments, each qualified club has been placed one of four seeding pots based on their previous performances in UEFA competitions. The top pot contains the best performing clubs – as well as the previous year’s winner irrespective of their long-term form – and the bottom pot contains those with the least or worst form.
Manchester City and Liverpool are both in Pot 1, Arsenal are in Pot 2, with Aston Villa and Celtic almost certainly destined for Pot 4.
But rather than those pots deciding which sides from the other three pots a team will face in the group stage, they will help determine the eight teams a side plays against in this new “league phase”.
Each team will be drawn against two opponents from each of the four pot, one of which they will play at home, the other away.
They cannot face any teams that play in their own domestic league, and can only face two sides from the same country.
For example, Man City will not play Liverpool, Arsenal or Villa in the league phase, and if they draw a Bayern Munich from Pot 1, they can only face one other German club in the first round.
The knockout phase will play out in much the same way as previous tournaments, save for the fact that it will be seeded based on sides’ league position. This will also ensure that the league phase’s top two sides will not face each other until the final.
Why has UEFA changed the format?
In a video released to promote and explain the new format, European Football’s governing body said that the league phase will help ensure that “every match, every goal, every point and position in the ranking counts”, creating “fast-changing and unpredictable standings”.
It also means we will see more games between big European clubs earlier on in the tournament and more competitive matches, the body said.
But neutral observers have pointed out that other motives may lie behind the change.
The decision to increase the Champions League from 32 to 36 teams, include eight as opposed to six group stage games and incorporate a play-off round means the total number of matches in the tournament has ballooned from 125 to 189. This will allow UEFA to rake in more for the tournament’s broadcast rights.