How the Champions League draw works for Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea and the huge prize money

Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea as well as Liverpool, Manchester City and Newcastle will find out in just over a week's time exactly who they will face in the Champions League league phase.

Spurs are making their return to the competition under a new head coach in Thomas Frank, who will be getting his first taste of the tournament following his switch from Brentford this summer. Tottenhambooked their place in the Champions League after winning the Europa League in Bilbao in May by beating Manchester United in the final.

Chelsea return to the competition through their fourth place Premier League league position, and also lifted the UEFA Conference League while Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City take their place once again in the tournament against the continent's elite clubs. There is also a sixth Premier League team in the competition this season after Eddie Howe's Newcastle secured a European Performance Spot having finished fifth in the table.

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Two such spots were awarded to the associations with the best collective performance by their clubs at the end of last season's UEFA men's competitions.

Here's everything you need to know about next week's league phase draw.

When is it taking place?

This year's league phase draw for the Champions League will take place in Monaco on Thursday, August 28 at 5pm UK time and will follow the same procedure as last year.

What is that procedure?

Under the increased fixture format brought in last season, teams will play eight matches in the league phase. They will no longer play three opponents twice – home and away – like previous seasons, but instead will face fixtures against eight different teams, playing half of those matches at home and half of them away.

To determine the eight different opponents, the teams will initially be ranked in four seeding pots. Each team will then be drawn to play two opponents from each of these pots, playing one match against a team from each pot at home, and one away.

So 36 participating teams will be split into four pots based on their individual coefficient ranking with the Champions League titleholder PSG the top seed in Pot 1.

Starting with Pot 1, one physical ball will be drawn before the automated software – already in use last year – draws eight opponents for them.

How does that work?

Two teams are selected from each of the four pots, with one home and one away match against teams from each pot drawn by the software. No teams from the same association can be drawn against each other with teams facing no more than two opponents from another association. The procedure will be repeated for all teams until all pairings have been drawn.

When will we know the exact dates and times?

The Champions League fixture list with match dates and kick-off times is expected to be communicated no later than Saturday, August 30.

When are the league phase matches?

Matchday 1: 16–18 September 2025
Matchday 2: 30 September–1 October 2025
Matchday 3: 21/22 October 2025
Matchday 4: 4/5 November 2025
Matchday 5: 25/26 November 2025
Matchday 6: 9/10 December 2025
Matchday 7: 20/21 January 2026
Matchday 8: 28 January 2026

When are the knockout games?

Knockout phase play-offs: 17/18 & 24/25 February 2026
Round of 16: 10/11 & 17/18 March 2026
Quarter-finals: 7/8 & 14/15 April 2026
Semi-finals: 28/29 April & 5/6 May 2026
Final: 30 May 2026

Where is the Champions League final being played?

The Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary, will provide the stage for the Champions League final on May 30, 2026. This will be the first time that the final of Europe's elite club competition will be held in Hungary.

How much prize money will clubs make?

We can only base this on the figures from last season at this moment but taking that into account all six Premier League clubs would have made £15.7million just by reaching the league phase.

For every win in the league phase this season, using the last set of figures, clubs get £1.77million and for every draw £590,000. Reaching the play-off round brings a further £843,000 and finishing in the top eight in the league would net a club £1.7million as well as the £9.27million for reaching the round of 16.

Then, according to last season's figures, a quarter-final finish brings £10.53million and the semi-finals £12.64million. If you were to reach the final then the runners-up make £15.59million and the winner £21.07million.

With FIFA's hugely lucrative Club World Cup this summer, it will be interesting to see how UEFA responds with the prize money for the 2025/26 season of the Champions League. Either way, it's a huge boost to finances for the teams involved in it.