Manchester United and City discover Champions League group-phase opponents in Thursday's draw

Manchester United and Manchester City will find out their 2026/27 UEFA Champions League league-phase opponents on Thursday evening, with the draw scheduled to begin at 5pm BST.

United are back in European football’s premier club competition for the first time since the 2023/24 season, having secured their return under manager Michael Carrick. City, meanwhile, enter the draw in Pot 1 — a seeding determined by UEFA’s club coefficient rankings, which are based on each club’s European results across the five-year period ending in 2025/26.

Liverpool and Arsenal also occupy Pot 1 alongside City, while Aston Villa join United in Pot 2. Under the competition’s league-phase format, each of the 36 clubs is drawn against eight different opponents — two from each of the four seeding pots — with four home fixtures and four away. English clubs cannot be paired against one another in the draw.

For City, the draw represents an opportunity to reset after what the club regards as a pair of underwhelming European campaigns. Their last Champions League triumph came in 2023, when they completed a treble under Pep Guardiola. Enzo Maresca now leads the side into a competition they are expected to challenge in once more.

United’s return to the Champions League is a significant milestone for a club that has spent recent seasons rebuilding. Carrick’s side will enter the draw knowing they face a varied set of opponents drawn from across Europe’s elite, with the full picture becoming clear once the ceremony concludes.