Overview

• League phase runs 16 September to 28 January with eight games per team; the top eight reach the round of 16 and places 9–24 enter February play‑offs (17–25) before knockouts from March to May.
• PSG’s title defense features showpiece games against Barcelona and Bayern Munich, while Real Madrid drew Manchester City, a visit to Liverpool and a long away day at debutant Kairat Almaty.
• Three clubs make their first Champions League appearance: Kairat Almaty (Kazakhstan), Pafos (Cyprus) and Bodo/Glimt (Norway), creating some of the competition’s longest and coldest away fixtures.
• Travel to Almaty stands out for distance and duration, with examples such as roughly 8,000 km from Madrid and lengthy multi‑stop routes from Pafos reported by local media.
• The final is set for 30 May 2026 at Budapest’s Puskás Arena, while Europa League and Conference League follow the same league‑phase model with finals in Istanbul on 20 May and Leipzig on 27 May.