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Defending champions Real Madrid and the rest of Europe’s elite clubs will know their route to Champions League glory when the draw for this season’s group stage is made in Istanbul on Thursday.
If there is to be any Champions League newcomer among the 32 group-stage teams this season, it can only be Bodø/Glimt of Norway. The final three qualifiers will be decided Wednesday when the second legs are played in three playoffs. Bodø/Glimt takes a 1-0 lead to Croatia to face Dinamo Zagreb and Copenhagen leads 2-1 against host Trabzonspor of Turkey in the playoffs route reserved for national champions.
In the separate section for teams that were runner-up or third in a high-ranked league, PSV Eindhoven hosts Rangers after a 2-2 draw in Scotland last week. The Champions League groups are drawn Thursday in Istanbul.
Champions League Group Stage Pots
Pot 1
Real Madrid
Eintracht Frankfurt
Manchester City
AC Milan
Bayern Munich
PSG
Porto
Ajax
Pot 2
Liverpool
Chelsea
Barcelona
Juventus
Atletico Madrid
Sevilla
RB Leipzig
Tottenham
Pot 3
Borussia Dortmund
RB Salzburg
Shakhtar Donetsk
Inter Milan
Napoli
Sporting Lisbon
Bayern Leverkusen
Olympic Marseille
Pot 4
Club Brugge
Celtic
Maccabi Haifa
Copenhagen or Trabzonspor
Bodo/Glimt or Dinamo Zagreb
Viktoria Plzen
Rangers or PSV
Benfica
The UEFA Champions League group stage draw will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday 25 August, and will be streamed live from 9:30 PM IST.
UCL group stage matches begin on September 6 and conclude on November 2