Bundesliga
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Four German participants will start in the upcoming Champions League season. The best chances of getting ahead will again have Bayern Munich. The German record champion is a regular participant in the late phase of the competition in the top eight best teams set. Thus, the team in the group hare will not meet high-caliber players like Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Manchester City or Juventus.
The remaining three German participants are divided among the other three pots when the group stage is drawn on Thursday in Monaco (18 clock, live ticker SPIEGEL ONLINE, TV: Sky / DAZN). Borussia Dortmund is in pot two, FC Schalke 04 is in pot three and premier class debutant 1899 Hoffenheim in pot four. A pure Bundesliga group is still not possible because duels among participants from one country are excluded in the group stage.
On the other hand, a repeat of last year's Champions League final in the first main round would be conceivable. The previous year's finalist FC Liverpool was classified due to its Uefa coefficient only in pot three. Thus, an early meeting of coach Jürgen Klopp with his former club Borussia Dortmund would be possible.
The four lot pots at a glance:
Pot one: Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona, Bayern Munich , Manchester City, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Lok Moscow
Pot two: Borussia Dortmund , FC Porto, Manchester United, Shakhtar Donetsk, SSC Naples, Benfica Lisbon, Tottenham Hotspur, AS Roma
Pot three: Liverpool FC, FC Schalke 04 , Olympique Lyon, AS Monaco, Ajax Amsterdam, CSKA Moscow, PSV Eindhoven, Valencia CF
Pot four: Viktoria Pilsen, Bruges, Galatasaray Istanbul, Young Boys Bern, Inter Milan, 1899 Hoffenheim , Red Star Belgrade, AEK Athens
The group phase of the Champions League starts on 18 and 19 September with the first matchday. The first and second of each of the eight groups move into the round of 16. The finale will take place on 1 June next year in the Spanish capital at the Wanda Metropolitano, the Atlético Madrid stadium.