The Champions League draw will have no new names in the 32-team lineup after the last confirmed entry ended an unlikely run by a Norwegian team. Bodo/Glimt, which spent much of the past two decades in the Norwegian second division, had been hoping to cap its recent rise by joining Europe's elite competition but lost in extra time to Dinamo Zagreb in the playoffs Wednesday. Dinamo joined Rangers and Copenhagen, which also advanced through their playoffs to complete a group-stage lineup stacked with 14 former former champions who have won 56 of the 67 European Cup or Champions League titles. Seven more teams are previous beaten finalists.
The elite group includes defending champion Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus, who are still fighting Champions League organizer UEFA in the European Court of Justice for the right to form their own breakaway competition.
__ Group stage draw
_ Istanbul, Turkiye
_ Thursday 25 August
__ 18:00 CET#UCLdraw || #UCL pic.twitter.com/O25O6SpK8R— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 25, 2022
The Champions League typically showcases at least one new face - Sheriff of Moldova last year, Italy's Atalanta in 2019 - and had four debutants two years ago. There is no such upstart this season, though some in Scotland would argue Rangers should count as a first-timer. A humiliating financial crisis 10 years ago saw the storied club liquidated and restart anew in the fourth tier of Scottish soccer.
The Rangers name is now back in the Champions League after a 12-year absence, joining Glasgow rival Celtic in the group stage.
Shakhtar Donetsk will be in the draw two days after playing its first competitive game ? the opening day of an improbable new domestic season in Ukraine -- since Russia invaded its home country in February.
Shakhtar's entry was ultimately gifted from Zenit St. Petersburg by UEFA's ban on all Russian teams, but the Ukrainian club no longer has its core of Brazilian players and will be playing its home games in Warsaw in neighboring Poland for security reasons.
DRAW FORMAT
The 32 teams from 15 different countries go into groups of four playing home-and-away round-robin games. Teams from the same country cannot be in the same group. The top two in each group advance to the knockout stage next year. Top seeds are the winners of last season's Champions League and Europa League, Real Madrid and Eintracht Frankfurt, plus six winners of the highest-ranked domestic leagues. The other 24 teams are seeded according to UEFA ranking based on European results in the past five seasons. Liverpool is ranked highest of the 24 and Maccabi Haifa is lowest.
Ahead of the UEFA Champions League group stage draw and award ceremony, here's all you need to know:
Which teams have qualified for the Champions League 2022-23 season?
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
Dinamo Zagreb
Viktoria Plzen
Rangers
Benfica
When and where will the UEFA Champions League group stage draw take place?
The Champions League 2022-23 group stage draw will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday 25 August, and can be live-streamed from 9:30 PM IST.
How to watch the UEFA Champions League group stage draw on television in India?
The Champions League 2022-23 group stage draw will be telecasted live on Sony Sports Network channels in India.
How to watch the live streaming of UEFA Champions League group stage draw in India?
The Champions League 2022-23 group stage draw live streaming will be available on SonyLiv app and website.
When does the UEFA Champions League group stage commence?
The Champions League 2022-23 group stage will kick start from September 6th and 7th. Here are the dates in full:
Matchday 1: 6/7 September
Matchday 2: 13/14 September
Matchday 3: 4/5 October
Matchday 4: 11/12 October
Matchday 5: 25/26 October
Matchday 6: 1/2 November
Round of 16 draw: 7 November
With PTI inputs
