What we know about the 2020/21 Champions League

Tuesday 18 August 2020 16:00

Manchester United qualified for the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League group stage thanks to a final-day victory over Leicester City in July.

That 2-0 win over the Foxes meant the Reds finished third in the Premier League and are now one of four English sides who will play in next season's European Cup.

But who else has booked their spot? When will the group-stage draw take place? And when are the fixtures scheduled for?

Scroll down for all the answers…

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Watch in full: United 4 Benfica 1

On 29 May 1968, we beat Benfica to win our first European Cup! Enjoy the full game now via ‘Match Rewind’…

ALL 26 CONFIRMED SIDES SO FAR:

ESP (4): Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla
ENG (4): Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea
ITA (4): Juventus, Internazionale, Atalanta, Lazio
GER (4): Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Mönchengladbach
FRA (3): Paris Saint-Germain, Marseille, Rennes
RUS (2): Zenit St Petersburg, Lokomotiv Moskow
POR (1): Porto
BEL (1): Club Brugge
UKR (1): Shakhtar Donetsk
TUR (1): İstanbul Basaksehir
NED (1): Ajax

WHO ELSE COULD BE INVOLVED?

UEFA rules state if the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League winners qualify via their domestic league, then the champions of the 11th-ranked association (Netherlands) will enter the group stage. Ajax's place was therefore confirmed when Lyon exited to Bayern Munich in the semi-final on 19 August, as both finalists, Bayern and PSG, won their respective titles.

Similarly, if the 2019/20 Europa League winners qualify via their domestic league - which finalists Internazionale and Sevilla have done - then the third-placed team of the fifth-ranked association (France) will enter the group stage. As such, Rennes have now secured their participation.

The other six places in the group-stage will come from the Champions League third qualifying round.

WILL WE PLAY A QUALIFYING ROUND?

The short answer is no! In years gone by, a third-placed Premier League finish would have meant a place in the final round of Champions League qualifying. But that is no longer the case and the top four from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga automatically make up half of the 32 sides in the group stage.

The first qualifying round took place on 8 August and this year features five different stages, the last of which will finish on 30 September.

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Watch in full: Bayern 1 United 2

It's probably the most famous match in United history, but have you ever watched it again in full? Now you can...

WHEN IS THE GROUP-STAGE DRAW?

Once all 32 entrants have been confirmed, the draw for the group stage will take place in Nyon, Switzerland on Thursday 1 October.

It's likely United will be in pot two, due to our coefficient ranking.

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Watch in full: Chelsea 1 United 1

Did you miss our live stream of the 2008 Champions League final? Then watch all of the nerve-shredding drama here...

WHEN IS THE FIRST MATCHDAY?

The first round of group-stage matches is set for 20/21 October and the whole group stage will be wrapped up by 9 December. That means the Reds will be in midweek European action for six out of eight midweeks during October, November and December.

Get behind the team as the Reds go marching on! Our new adidas home kit for 2020/21 is on sale now.

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