When are Champions League fixtures announced? Liverpool, Spurs, Chelsea and Man City await 2019 group stage schedule
Fans eager to book their away trips for the Champions League group stage will have to wait until the fixtures are announced by Uefa
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The Champions League group-stage draw has taken place in Monaco on Thursday evening, with defending holders Liverpool learning their fate along with the other 31 sides left in the competition this season.
The eight groups of four were revealed at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, signalling the start of the main European competition this season after two months of qualifiers.
Holders Liverpool play Napoli, Salzburg and Genk in Group E while Manchester City will face Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk, Croatia's Dinamo Zagreb and Italian side Atalanta in Group C.
Both Klopp and City boss Pep Guardiola will have few complaints with their respective groups, although Tottenham and Chelsea appear to be facing tougher challenges.
Tottenham will take on five-time winners Bayern Munich, Olympiacos and Red Star Belgrade in Group B while Chelsea, drawn in Group H, will play last season's beaten semi-finalists Ajax, Valencia and French club Lille.
The draw decides which teams are grouped together throughout the six rounds of fixtures that determines who makes the knockout stages, who drops down to the Europa League and who exits Europe before 2019 is out, but it doesn’t necessarily determine what order the fixtures will be in.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Champions League group-stage fixtures.
Champions League group-stage dates
17/18 September: Group stage, matchday one
1/2 October: Group stage, matchday two
22/23 October: Group stage, matchday three
5/6 November: Group stage, matchday four
26/27 November: Group stage, matchday five
10/11 December: Group stage, matchday six
When are the fixtures announced?
Following the conclusion of the draw, Uefa will meet with all 32 clubs to structure the full group stage. An announcement of confirmed fixtures is expected shortly after 9pm BST (10pm CET).
How are they determined?
Teams in the same city are not able to play on the same matchday, meaning Chelsea and Tottenham will be separated across Tuesday/Wednesday if both at home, or will be staged home and away on the same matchdays. The same goes for Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid,
Leagues that have four representatives in the Champions League this season will be split two and two over each matchday round, while those with three representatives will be split two and one.
Who is in which groups?
Group A: Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Club Brugge, Galatasaray
Group B: Bayern Munich, Tottenham Hotspur, Olympiakos, Crvena Zvezda
Group C: Manchester City, Shakhtar Donetsk, Dinamo Zagreb, Atalanta
Group D : Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lokomotiv Moscow
Group E: Liverpool, Napoli, FC Salzburg, Genk
Group F: Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund, Inter Milan, Slavia Prague
Group G: Zenit St Petersburg, Benfica, Lyon, RB Leipzig
Group H: Chelsea, Ajax, Valencia, Lille
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments