FC Bayern's potential opponents in the league phase of the Champions League

Which eight teams will FC Bayern face in the newly created league phase of the Champions League? This decision will be made on Thursday evening (18:00 CEST) in Monaco when the draw for the Champions League fixtures is made. The German record champions will be drawn against two opponents from each of four pots of nine teams. They cannot play rivals from their own country or more than two teams from the same national association.

The teams are placed in the draw pots based on their UEFA club coefficient. Here, the men from Munich have the second-highest rating after Manchester City and are therefore seeded in the first of the four pots. fcbayern.com provides an overview of their potential opponents.

Pot 1

While it wasn't previously possible to be drawn against opponents from the same pot, Bayern can expect to meet two clubs from the highest category from this season onwards. In addition to defending champions Real Madrid, the Reds could face Premier League winners Manchester City, Italian champions Inter Milan or French champions Paris Saint-Germain.

Real Madrid
Manchester City
FC Bayern
Paris Saint-Germain
Liverpool
Inter Milan
Borussia Dortmund (not possible)
RB Leipzig (not possible)
Barcelona

Pot 2

In addition to Europa League winners Atalanta, against whom FCB haven't yet played a competitive match, Bayern can only expect some ‘old acquaintances’ in pot 2. It could also mean a quick rematch with last year's quarter-final opponents Arsenal.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen (not possible)
Atlético Madrid
Atalanta
Juventus
Benfica
Arsenal
Club Bruges
Shakhtar Donetsk
AC Milan

Pot 3

Pot three certainly has a champions look to it and includes PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Celtic (Scotland), Young Boys (Switzerland), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia) and Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), five teams that topped their domestic leagues.  

Feyernoord
Sporting Lisbon
PSV Eindhoven
Dinamo Zagreb
Salzburg
Lille
Red Star Belgrade
Young Boys
Celtic

Pot 4

There are some new faces in Europe's premier club competition such as Bologna (Italy), Girona (Spain) or Brest (France), but also some old friends like Monaco in pot 4. They'll make for some attractive encounters for FC Bayern.

Slovan Bratislava
Monaco
Sparta Prague
Aston Villa
Bologna
Girona
VfB Stuttgart (not possible)
Sturm Graz
Brest

All you need to know about the new Champions League format: