Champions League Draw: Bayern-Barcelona, Real Madrid-Liverpool to meet in revamped league phase format

Holders Real Madrid will meet Liverpool in the new-looked Champions League format as draws for the initial phase of the 2024-25 season were made on Thursday (Aug 29). Both Real Madrid and Liverpool share a whopping 21 Champions League titles between them and will meet after a computerised draw was carried out in Monaco. Other crunch tie in the revamped phase include Bayern Munich’s meeting with Barcelona.

Real Madrid face Liverpool

In a repeat of the 2018 and 2022 Champions League final, holders Real will face Liverpool in the revamped league phase with the tie taking place at the iconic Anfield Stadium. The clash will be iconic considering both teams have a rich history in the competition. Real will also face AC Milan in the league phase with both teams sharing 15 and seven titles respectively.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side also face Borussia Dortmund and Salzburg at home while Atalanta and Lille await in the away ties.

Bayern Munich and Barcelona meet in another big tie of the Champions League initial phase. The last two times Bayern and Barcelona have met in the initial phase the latter has failed to qualify for the knockout stage. The most famous meeting between the sides came in August 2020 when Bayern beat Barcelona 8-2 in a single-legged contest.

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REAL MADRID (ESP)

Borussia Dortmund (h), Liverpool (a), AC Milan (h), Atalanta (a), Salzburg (h), Lille (a), VfB Stuttgart (h), Brest (a)

MANCHESTER CITY (ENG)

Inter Milan (h), Paris Saint-Germain (a), Club Brugge (h), Juventus (a), Feyenoord (h), Sporting Lisbon (a), Sparta Prague (h), Slovan Bratislava (a)

BAYERN MUNICH (GER)

Paris Saint-Germain (h), Barcelona (a), Benfica (h), Shakhtar Donetsk (a), Dinamo Zagreb (h), Feyenoord (a), Slovan Bratislava (h), Aston Villa (a)

PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN (FRA)

Manchester City (h), Bayern Munich (a), Atletico Madrid (h), Arsenal (a), PSV Eindhoven (h), Salzburg (a), Girona (h), VfB Stuttgart (a) 

LIVERPOOL (ENG)

Real Madrid (h), RB Leipzig (a), Bayer Leverkusen (h), AC Milan (a), Lille (h), PSV Eindhoven (a), Bologna (h), Girona (a)

The dates for the fixtures will be announced on Saturday (Aug 31) after a meeting with the broadcasters.