Champions League draw pots could see Liverpool face Real Madrid AGAIN

REVEALED: Next season’s Champions League draw pots… which could see Liverpool face Real Madrid AGAIN with the Reds joining Chelsea and Tottenham in missing out on seeding, while Inter Milan and Dortmund lurk in ‘Pot 3’

  • Real Madrid’s Champions League win meant they qualified twice for the top pot
  • As a result, Ajax have been included in the pot as champions of the Eredivisie
  • Napoli and Inter Milan are in pot three, meaning they could create tough groups
  • Eintracht Frankfurt were seeded after their Europa League win over Rangers 

Ajax have been confirmed as the last of eight top seeded teams for next year’s Champions League.

The top pot is usually reserved for the winners of Europe’s top six leagues, plus the Europa and Champions League holders. However, Real Madrid’s 1-0 win over Liverpool in the Champions League final meant they would have qualified twice after securing La Liga earlier this season.

Ajax gained the last spot in pot one on the back of their win in the Eredivisie, rated as the seventh best league in Europe.

Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League, opening a place in the top qualifying pot

It means the top pot will be made up of: Manchester City, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, AC Milan, PSG, Porto, Ajax and Eintracht Frankfurt. 

Frankfurt had the lowest domestic finish of the top seeds, finishing 11th out of 18 in the Bundesliga but qualifying through their Europa League win.  

The remaining three pots are decided based on a co-efficient club ranking across the past five years.

Eight groups will be drawn with one team from each pot in every group. Only one team from each country will be allowed in a group.

Pot two is confirmed as: Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona, Juventus, Atletico Madrid, RB Leipzig, Sevila and Tottenham.

Missing out on seeding means Liverpool could come up against Liverpool in the group stage. 

Ajax will be a top seeded team in next year’s Champions League after winning the Eredivisie

The next pot could create some challenging groups, as Borussia Dortmund, Inter Milan and Napoli all enter groups with two teams from higher up. The rest of pot three is made up of Sporting Lisbon, Bayer Leverkusen, FC Salzburg and Shakhtar Donetsk.

Benfica may join them if the Portuguese side make it through a qualifying round, but if not they will be in pot four.

Celtic and Club Brugge are confirmed in pot four and will be joined by six teams from the qualifying rounds.

The draw for the group stage will take place on August 25. 




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