All you need to know: 2019/20 UEFA Champions League
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Article summary
The 2018/19 edition kicks off on 25 June and ends in Istanbul on 30 May 2020. Here's the who, what, where and when.
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When does it start?
The action gets under way on 25 June – exactly 24 days after Liverpool were crowned champions for the sixth time in Madrid – with the semi-finals of the preliminary round. Three further qualifying rounds follow before the play-offs at the end of August to confirm the group stage line-up. That phase begins on 17 September and runs every two or three weeks until 11 December. The knockout stages begin on 18 February, with the season culminating in Istanbul on 30 May.
How does qualifying work?
Twenty-six of the 32 teams that will contest the 2019/20 group stage are confirmed, and they will be joined by six play-off winners in August. Those six sides will come through one of these qualifying paths:
- Champions route – this path is for domestic title holders, starting with the four lowest-ranked nations in the preliminary round (played as a knockout mini-tournament in Kosovo). The victors are joined by the next 31 lowest-ranked teams in the first qualifying round, with the next four sides added at the following stage. The ten winners plus another two new entrants then face off in the third qualifying round, with the triumphant six then joined by two more sides in four play-off ties. Excluding the preliminary round, all ties are played over two legs, home and away.
League route – there are three rounds in all. Four teams start in the second qualifying round, with the two winners joined by six more sides in the next phase. Four teams reach the play-offs, with two ties determining who makes it through to the group stage. All ties are played over two legs, home and away.
- UEFA rankings: association club coefficients
Who's already in the group stage?
ESP: Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, Real Madrid, Valencia
ENG: Manchester City, Liverpool (holders), Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur
ITA: Juventus, Napoli, Atalanta, Internazionale Milano
GER: Bayern München, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen
FRA: Paris Saint-Germain, LOSC Lille, Lyon
RUS: Zenit, Lokomotiv Moskva
POR: Benfica
UKR: Shakhtar Donetsk
BEL: Genk
TUR: Galatasaray
AUT: Salzburg
When are the draws?
11 June: Preliminary round draw, Nyon
18 June: First & second qualifying round draws, Nyon
22 July: Third qualifying round draw, Nyon
5 August: Play-off round draw, Nyon
29 August: Group stage draw, Monaco
16 December: Round of 16 draw, Nyon
20 March: Quarter-final and semi-final draws, Nyon
Where is the final?
The 2020 final will be at the Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadı, Istanbul. The game is scheduled for Saturday 30 May 2020, kick-off 21:00CET.
All information and teams subject to final approval from UEFA