The final round of champions, the playoffs, will be determined between this week and next. Six intense clashes will produce the last six members of the 2023–2024 Champions League group stage and will ultimately form the threads of the draw in Monaco on Thursday, August 31.
The six fraternal duels that will leave behind some teams that have staked everything on being in the next Champions League: Galatasaray, PSV, Antwerp, Panathinaikos, Braga, Rangers… Not everyone can play the four drawdrums. The playoff round will be played between August 22nd and 23rd, the first legs, and August 29th and 30th, the second legs. The losers have a place in the Europa League draw.
Final Elimination:
- Antwerp-AEK Athens
- Rakov-Copenhague
- Rangers PSV
- Maccabi Haifa Young Boys
- Molde Galatasaray
- Braga Panathinaikos
Pots 1 and 2 of the draw are now finally closed.
- Pot 1: Manchester City, Sevilla, Barcelona, ​​​​Napoli, Bayern, PSG, Benfica and Feyenoord.
- Bombo 2: Real Madrid, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Atlético, Leipzig, Porto and Arsenal.
- Pot 3: Shakhtar, Milan, Salzburg, Lazio, Red Star.
- Pot 4: Real Sociedad, Celtic, Newcastle, Lens, Union Berlin.
The inclusion of teams like Newcastle, Milan or Lazio in pots 3 and 4 makes those pots very dangerous as ‘groups of death’ can form for Spanish sides if they avoid English and Italian teams for the first few balls.
