Champions League group stage draw: Pot 1

UEFA.com profiles the eight teams in Pot 1 ahead of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League group stage draw in Istanbul on 25 August.

The holders, the UEFA Europa League winners and the champions of the six highest-ranked associations are placed in Pot 1. With many league titles changing hands last season, only Bayern and Man. City remain from the eight in Pot 1 a year ago.

Real Madrid (ESP, holders)

UEFA coefficient ranking (end of 2021/22): 4
How they qualified: Champions League winners
Last season: Winners (W 1-0 vs Liverpool)
Best European Cup performance: Winners (1955/56, 1956/57, 1957/58, 1958/59, 1959/60, 1965/66, 1997/98, 1999/2000, 2001/02, 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18, 2021/22)

2021/22: Carlo Ancelotti's first season back in the Real Madrid hotseat couldn't have gone much better. Extending a competition record by clinching their 35th Liga crown with four matches remaining – the earliest they had done so since 1989/90 – was followed up with lifting the premier continental prize for the 14th time with a win against Liverpool. Los Blancos' ability for mounting spectacular comebacks was propelled by Karim Benzema's goals, as the 34-year-old topped the UEFA Champions League scoring charts with 15 as part of a career-best tally of 44 in all competitions.

Eintracht Frankfurt (GER, Europa League holders)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 26
How they qualified: Europa League winners
Last season: Europa League winners
Best European Cup performance: Runners-up (1959/60)

2021/22: With an early domestic cup exit and just one league victory prior to November, it looked like it was shaping up to be a season to forget for the Eagles. Instead, it ended with them lifting their second major European honour. Among the many highlights of their unbeaten Europa League run was a quarter-final success against Barcelona, including a stunning 3-2 second-leg win at the Camp Nou. Oliver Glasner's men showed grit to overcome going behind in the final against Rangers in Seville and eventually triumphed 5-4 on penalties.

Manchester City (ENG)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 3
How they qualified: English champions
Last season: Semi-finals (L 5-6agg vs Real Madrid)
Best European Cup performance: Runners-up (2020/21)

2021/22: For the second time in four campaigns, Pep Guardiola's side were pushed right until the final day of the Premier League season by Liverpool. With semi-final exits in the FA Cup, at the hands of the Reds, and the Champions League, on the wrong end of a remarkable Real Madrid comeback, there was renewed focus on league glory. Having not suffered a Premier League defeat since October, City trailed 2-0 to Aston Villa on the concluding matchday, before mounting an impressive fightback of their own to seal a fourth league title in five seasons.

AC Milan (ITA)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 45
How they qualified: Italian champions
Last season: Group stage
Best European Cup performance: Winners (1962/63, 1968/69, 1988/89, 1989/90, 1993/94, 2002/03, 2006/07)

2021/22: After finishing 12 points behind their city rivals in Serie A in 2020/21, it appeared as if it was going to be Inter's crown again as they opened up a four-point lead at the halfway stage. Overcoming the disappointment of a Champions League group exit, Milan cut into that, a comeback victory in the derby in February proving a real turning point. That success began a run of 11 wins in their final 15 matches, as the Rossoneri fought off their fellow challengers to lift their first league title since 2010/11.

Bayern München (GER)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 1
How they qualified: German champions
Last season: Quarter-finals (L 1-2agg vs Villarreal)
Best European Cup performance: Winners (1973/74, 1974/75, 1975/76, 2000/01, 2012/13, 2019/20)

2021/22: Following an impressive group stage showing and an 8-2 aggregate success over Salzburg in the Round of 16, Bayern appeared to be mounting a bid for a second UEFA Champions League in three seasons. However, they were unable to break down a stubborn Villarreal in the last eight, going down 2-1 on aggregate. Julian Nagelsmann steered them to their tenth Bundesliga title in a row, but it remains to be seen how they will cope without the goals of Robert Lewandowski, who hit 50 for the second time in a campaign in a Bayern shirt before departing for pastures new.

Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 7
How they qualified: French champions
Last season: Round of 16 (L 2-3agg vs Real Madrid)
Best European Cup performance: Runners-up (2019/20)

2021/22: Following mixed results in Group A, including draws with Club Brugge and Leipzig as well as a victory and a loss against Manchester City, Paris met Real Madrid in the round of 16. Yet despite going 2-0 up on aggregate they lost to the eventual winners in the second leg in Madrid. Christophe Galtier replaced Mauricio Pochettino in the hot seat over the summer and with the enviable front line at his disposal, including Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar, the reigning French champions will be eyeing a deeper run in the competition this time.

Porto (POR)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 16
How they qualified: Portuguese champions
Last season: Group stage, Europa League round of 16
Best European Cup performance: Winners (1986/87, 2003/04)

2021/22: Porto were in the runners-up spot in Group B ahead of their Matchday 6 assignment at home to Atlético, having previously drawn with the Spanish side and taken four points off Milan. However, after an eventful game with three red cards and three stoppage-time goals, Sérgio Conceição's charges were pipped to the post by Atlético and ended up third in the section. Porto beat Lazio in the UEFA Europa League knockout round play-offs, but were eliminated by Lyon in the round of 16. Subsequently reclaiming the Portuguese league title for a third time in five years will have gone some way to mitigating that disappointment.

Ajax (NED)

UEFA coefficient ranking: 15
How they qualified: Dutch champions
Last season: Round of 16 (L 2-3agg vs Benfica)
Best European Cup performance: Winners (1970/71, 1971/72, 1972/73, 1994/95)

2021/22: Alongside Liverpool and Bayern, Ajax were one of just three teams to reach the knockout rounds with a perfect record. Spearheaded by star striker Sébastien Haller, who became just the second player to score in all six group games after Cristiano Ronaldo in 2017/18, the Dutch outfit looked formidable, only to be knocked out by Benfica in the round of 16. Ajax went on to win the Eredivisie title for a record 36th time but a busy summer transfer window, including the departures of head coach Erik ten Hag as well as key players Haller, Ryan Gravenberch, Lisandro Martínez and Noussair Mazraoui, among others, means new boss Alfred Schreuder has plenty to do.