⏪ AS IT HAPPENED: 2023/24 Champions League group stage draw | OneFootball

The 2023/24 Champions League draw took place in Monaco on Thursday.

Here’s how it went down.

All times CEST …

19:15 – That concludes our coverage of the Champions League group stage draw. Roll on the 19th and 20th September when the games begin!

19:14 – And finally, the Men’s and Women’s UEFA Player of the Year awards have been won by Manchester City striker Erling Haaland, and Spain midfielder Aitana Bonmatí. Read more here.

19:06 – Wiegman has dedicated her award to the Spain team who beat her England side in the World Cup final. A classy touch from the Dutch coach.

19:05 – Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and England coach Sarina Wiegman have been named the UEFA Men’s and Women’s Coaches of the Year respectively. Read more about it here.

18:54 – Here’s the draw in full!

18:52 – And last but not least are Champions League debutants Royal Antwerp, who go into Group H with Porto, Barcelona and Shakhtar.

18:51 – Celtic are in Group E along with Feyenoord, Atlético and Lazio.

18:50 – Next up are RC Lens, and they go into Group B with Arsenal, Sevilla and PSV.

18:49 – Young Boys are drawn next. They’re in Group G with Manchester City, RB Leipzig and Red Star Belgrade.

18:48 – Here come Champions League debutants Union Berlin. They’re in Group C with Napoli, Real Madrid and Braga! Another great group.

18:47 – Galatasaray are next out of the pot. They’re in Group A with Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Copenhagen.

18:46 – Newcastle have been drawn out! They go into Group F with PSG, Dortmund and AC Milan. That’s a dream draw for the Magpies!

18:45 – It’s Pot 4 time! Real Sociedad are the first club drawn, and they go into Group D with Benfica, Inter and Salzburg.

18:43 – That concludes Pot 3. So it’s 24 clubs drawn, eight to go!

18:42 – FC Copenhagen are in Group A with Bayern Munich and Manchester United.

18:41 – Here come Lazio. They go into Group E with Feyenoord and Atlético de Madrid.

18:40 – Next out are Austrian champions Salzburg. They’re in Group D with Benfica and Inter.

18:39 – European royalty AC Milan are the next to be drawn. They go into Group F with PSG and Dortmund. That’s a strong group!

18:38 – PSV Eindhoven come out next. They’re in Group B with Arsenal and Sevilla.

18:38 – Red Star Belgrade are out next, and they’re in Group G alongside Manchester City and RB Leipzig.

18:37 – The Pot 3 draw begins with Shakhtar Donetsk, who will go into Group H with Barcelona and Porto.

18:36 – Harry Kane is set for a quick return to England when his Bayern Munich team take on Manchester United. How good is that gonna be?

18:34 – Porto go into Group H with Barcelona, and Real Madrid are in Group C with Napoli. That’s a tasty one!

18:34 – Benfica go into Group D with last season’s finalists Inter.

18:33 – RB Leipzig come out next, and they will go into Group G with the club who knocked them out of the competition last season … Manchester City.

18:31 – Manchester United are next out the pot. Erik ten Hag’s side are in Group A with Bayern Munich.

18:30 – Atlético de Madrid are the next club drawn. They are in Group E with Feyenoord.

18:29 – Next up are Arsenal, back in the competition for the first time in a few years. They go into Group B, where they will face Sevilla.

18:28 – The first team out of Pot 2 are Borussia Dortmund and they will go into Group F, with Paris Saint-Germain.

18:26 – And the final club drawn from Pot 1 are Barcelona. We’ll find out who those teams will be facing from Pot 2 momentarily.

18:25 – In Group F are Paris Saint-Germain, with holders Manchester City going into Group G.

18:24 – Next out are Benfica, followed by Dutch champions Feyenoord.

18:24 – Sevilla are the second team drawn from Pot 1, followed by Napoli.

18:23 – Joe Cole has drawn the first team from Pot 1, and it’s Bayern Munich.

18:22 – “Giorgio, we’re ready, over to you” says presenter Pedro Pinto, and we’re off!

18:21 – UEFA do like to drag these draws out and now they’re running through all 32 teams in the competition this year.

18:19 – They’re now running through the ridiculously complex rules and I could do with an aspirin all of a sudden. Here’s a simplified version of everything you need to know about the draw.

18:18 – Giorgio has just wished Champions League debutants Union Berlin and Royal Antwerp good luck for their first ever draw. Seconded!

18:16 – And here comes UEFA Deputy General Secretary Giorgio Marchetti – the Santa Claus of the Champions League – to explain the rules of the draw. We’re getting closer.

18:14 – Barcelona legend Eric Abidal and Chelsea great Joe Cole have just come onto the stage. They will be pulling balls out of buckets for us any minute now hopefully.

18:11 – Manchester City sporting director Txiki Begiristain is now being interviewed about his club’s triumph last season. And we’ve just been reminded that City midfielder Rodri (who scored the winner in the final) was named UEFA Player of the Season, while Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia won the young player award.

BUT the awards for UEFA Men’s and Women’s Players and Coaches of the season will be handed out during today’s ceremony. You could say there are too many individual awards in football these days.

18:10 – Here’s a reminder of the 32 clubs who are going to be in today’s draw, and their respective pots.

Pot 1

Manchester City, Sevilla, Barcelona, Napoli, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Benfica, Feyenoord

Pot 2

Real Madrid, Manchester United, Inter, Borussia Dortmund, Atlético de Madrid, RB Leipzig, Porto, Arsenal

Pot 3

Shakhtar Donetsk, FC Salzburg, Milan, Braga, PSV Eindhoven, Lazio, Red Star Belgrade, FC Copenhagen

Pot 4

Young Boys, Real Sociedad, Galatasaray, Celtic, Newcastle, Union Berlin, Antwerp, Lens

18:06 – Manchester City are of course the current holders of the Champions League, and they became the 26th winners in the competition’s history last season. Are we going to see a 27th champion this year?

18:05 – While we’re waiting, Friday’s European transfer deadline is fast approaching, and the biggest move which took place on Thursday was Romelu Lukaku moving to Roma on loan from Chelsea. Here’s what the Belgian striker had to say about being reunited with José Mourinho …

18:02 – We’re now being treated to a jazzy rendition of the iconic Champions League anthem. It’s different, I’ll give them that.

18:01 – It looks like a swanky affair at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco where the draw is taking place. We’ve just seen Luís Figo on the red carpet. He’s looking great at 50!

18:00 – And here we go, let the fun begin! Although if you’re expecting the actual draw to happen anytime soon, I wouldn’t hold your breath.

17:45 – This is your 15 minute warning that the draw (or at least the ceremony) gets under way soon. In the meantime, here’s everything you need to know about the draw.