and will be in Pot 2 for the upcoming draw – therefore avoiding some of the competition’s toughest teams.
Both clubs are returning to Europe’s top tournament next season after finishing in the top four, with Arsenal set to play in the UCL for the first time since 2017.
They will be joined by treble winners as well as Newcastle whose last appearance in the Champions League group stage came way back in 2002.
Though all 32 teams competing in next season’s group stage are yet to be confirmed, with qualifying for that set to kick-off in just over two weeks time, the pots for the draw have been mostly set.
As the reigning champions, City have been drawn in Pot 1 alongside Europa League victors Sevilla and the title-winners from Europe’s top six leagues not including the Premier League.
Meanwhile, the Gunners and the Red Devils are in Pot 2 and finally Newcastle are in Pot 4 alongside Scottish champions Celtic.
Pots 2-4 are decided by UEFA’s five-year coefficient score and given that Mikel Arteta’s side haven’t played in the Champions League for six years, and didn’t play in Europe at all last season, there were fears they could be dropped into Pot 3.
Pots for the 2023/24 Champions League group stage draw so far:
Pot 1:
- Manchester City
- Sevilla
- Barcelona
- Napoli
- Bayern Munich
- Paris Saint-Germain
- Benfica
- Feyenoord
Pot 2:
- Real Madrid
- Manchester United
- Inter Milan
- Borussia Dortmund
- Atletico Madrid
- RB Leipzig
- Porto
- Arsenal
Pot 3:
- Shakhtar Donetsk
- Red Bull Salzburg
- AC Milan
- Lazio
- Red Star Belgrade
Pot 4:
- Celtic
- Newcastle
- Union Berlin
- Lens
*Real Sociedad have also already qualified and will be placed in either Pot 3 or 4 depending on which teams make it through the qualifying phase
That would have meant a much tougher group stage draw as Pots 1 and 2 are stacked with top teams, with the latter including Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Dortmund and Atletico Madrid.
That said, they could still face one of Barcelona, Napoli, Bayern Munich or PSG from Pot 1, while there is a chance they could form a ‘group of death’ with Serie giants AC Milan in Pot 3.
The Champions League group stage draw is set to take place on 31st August with the games getting underway on 19th September.
The 2023/24 UCL will be the last edition as we all know it, with the tournament evolving to a Swiss-style model with two extra fixtures per club from 2024/25 onwards.
There will be eight English teams competing across the continent next season, with Liverpool, Brighton and West Ham taking part in the Europa League, while Aston will be the sole representative in the Europa Conference League.
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