The new Champions League season is here and with it new teams, new kick-off times and a new chance for the Bundesliga.
Paris Saint-Germain are the defending champions of Europe's most popular club football competitionImage: Martin Meissner/AP Photo/picture alliance
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What do I need to know about this season's Champions League?
The new format of a 36-team league with eight matches continues this year, but perhaps the most exciting news comes about kickoff times.
The final will be held at 18:00 CET rather than 21:00, a first in the competition's modern history. UEFA hopes the move will make the final more family-friendly, improve local transport options for traveling supporters and, pivotally, also reach more eyeballs in key markets around the world.
The Champions League group stage makes history by setting new distance records, as Europe's biggest tournament grows into the continent's furthest corners. This season, the easternmost (Kazakh team Kairat) and northernmost European teams (Norway's Arctic Circle-based Bodo/Glimt) will compete in the group stage. It's also the first time in 20 years that a Ukrainian team has not qualified for the group stage. Cypriot side Pafos and Belgian team Union Saint-Gilloise will debut in the tournament, and the tournament will see six teams from one nation, England, for the first time.
Speaking of the newly named and formatted league stage, there are some exciting games to look forward to. Bayern Munich host Chelsea in a rematch of the 2012 final on September 17. Newcastle United and new signing Nick Woltemade are dropped into the deep end as they face Barcelona. The Spanish side play defending champions Paris Saint-Germain on October 1, Liverpool and Florian Wirtz play Real Madrid on November 4, Arsenal host Bayern Munich on November 26 and Manchester City travel to the Spanish on December 10 to play Real Madrid, the most successful team in the competition.
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Do the German teams have a chance?
From a German Bundesliga perspective, all eyes will naturally be on Bayern Munich. They have three particularly tricky games during the league phase against Chelsea, Arsenal and defending champions Paris Saint-Germain. Otherwise, they should feel confident about finishing in the top eight and qualifying directly for the round of 16.
For head coach Vincent Kompany's team, the goal of winning the Champions League is ever-present. They currently might not be favorites, but after missing out on the final in Munich last season, Bayern will be hoping they can go better than the quarterfinals this time.
Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt might have a tougher time of finishing in the top eight as they face tougher opponents. Frankfurt though, have great recent history in European competition, memorably winning the Europa League just three years ago. This season, they have the makings of being a real surprise package, so they are worth keeping an eye on. Dortmund remain unpredictable, and it's unclear what to expect of Bayer Leverkusen after they changed coaches just two games into the Bundesliga season.
Freiburg and Stuttgart will hope to shine in the second-tier Europa League this season, while Mainz will aim to make the most of a possible home advantage by reaching the third-tier Conference League final on May 27, 2026, which will be played in Leipzig.
The top 10 Champions League goal scorers
From Mbappe and Lewandowski to Müller, the top 10 all-time Champions League goal scorers list is full of stars.
Image: Eurokinissi/DPPI media/picture alliance
Harry Kane - 50 goals*
After losing the 2019 Champions League final with Spurs, Harry Kane has gone from strength to strength with Bayern Munich. After 21 in 31 in Europe's top competition for his old club, he is nearly at a goal a game for the German champions. With 50 goals in the Champions League, Kane is now level with legends Thierry Henry and Mohamed Salah. *as of March 25, 2026
Image: Philippe Ruiz/IMAGO
Ruud van Nistelrooy – 56 goals
Dutch striker Rutgerus Johannes Martinus van Nistelrooij scored for three clubs in the Champions League: PSV Eindhoven (8 goals), Manchester United (35) and Real Madrid (13). Van Nistelrooy failed to win a Champions League title, but he was the top scorer in Europe's top competition in three different seasons.
Image: Martin Rickett/empics/picture alliance
Thomas Müller – 57 goals
At the age of 19, Müller scored his first Champions League goals for Bayern Munich in a 7-1 win over Sporting Lisbon in March 2009. He won the Champions League twice with Bayern, in 2012-13 and 2019-20. In the summer of 2025 Müller surprised everybody – not by moving to MLS but by choosing the Vancouver Whitecaps. The now-36-year-old is hoping lead the Whitecaps to a first MLS Cup.
Image: Frank Hoermann/Sven Simon/IMAGO
Erling Haaland – 57 goals*
The Norwegian has become one of the most clinical goalscorers in the modern game. After scoring 8 goals in his first 6 UCL games for Red Bull Salzburg, he scored 15 in 13 for Borussia Dortmund. Since joining Manchester City, he scored 34 in 39 games, moving him up the top 10 list. His goals helped City win the Champions League in 2023. *as of March 25, 2026
Image: Mark Cosgrove/News Images/Avalon/picture alliance
Kylian Mbappe – 68 goals*
After bursting on the scene as a young star at Monaco and then establishing himself at Paris Saint-Germain, French superstar Kylian Mbappe is already climbing the all-time Champions League scorer list. The 25-year-old bagged a remarkable 42 goals in 64 games for PSG on the biggest European stage, and has already scored a European hat trick for Real Madrid. *as of March 25, 2026
Image: Federico Titone/Anadolu/picture alliance
Raul – 71 goals
Raul is truly a legend at Real Madrid. The long-time captain made more appearances for Real than any other player, with 550 games in La Liga and 132 in the Champions League. He also led Real to the Champions League title three times. Raul scored five of his 71 Champions League goals during his two-year stint with Schalke in the twilight of his career.
Image: Daniel Ochoa de Olza/AP/picture alliance
Karim Benzema – 90 goals
The Frenchman now plays in Saudi Arabia, but made his scoring debut in the Champions League for Lyon at the tender age of 18. Benzema left Lyon in 2009 to become one of Real Madrid's ost prolific strikers, helping them lift the Champions League trophy four times. He has a total of 90 goals in Europe's most prestigious club competition, 78 of them scored in the white of Madrid.
Image: Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP
Robert Lewandowski –109 goals*
In third place in the all-time scorer's list is The Best FIFA Men's Player of 2020, Robert Lewandowski. The Poland striker secured that honor in part by becoming the top scorer in the Champions League in the 2019-20 with 15 goals. Over his Champions League career he has scored 17 goals for Borussia Dortmund, 69 times for Bayern and currently has managed 23 for Barcelona. *as of March 25, 2026
Image: Isabella Bonotto/Anadolu/picture alliance
Lionel Messi – 129 goals
Lionel Messi might be playing for Inter Miami now in the MLS, but few can forget how good he was for Barcelona. The diminutive Argentine scored 120 goals in his Champions League career with the Spanish club, finishing the competition's top scorer six times and winning three titles. His last tournament outing was for PSG, but his nine goals were never accompanied by a title.
Image: imago images/PanoramiC
Cristiano Ronaldo – 140 goals
It's no coincidence that the Portuguese superstar has won the Champions League five times. Wherever he has played, whether it be Manchester United (21 goals), Real Madrid (105) or Juventus (14) – Cristiano Ronaldo has always found the back of the net. Although no longer playing in Europe, Ronaldo is the undisputed top scorer in Europe's top club competition.
Image: Colas Buera/picture alliance/PRO SHOTS
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What are the key dates?
The group stage starts on September 16 and runs until January 28. The knockouts begin in the middle of February (17-18 and 24-25) and run with two games every month following that until the final on May 30 in Budapest. It's the first time a European Cup/Champions League final will be held in Hungary.
It's also worth noting that the 2026 World Cup will start just 12 days after the Champions League final. Questions about load management will likely resurface at the start of 2026 as players cycle through a particularly busy New Year schedule and face the prospect of the biggest World Cup ever (48 teams, 104 games) just five months later.
The Europa League Final is in Istanbul on May 20, 2026, and the women's Champions League final will be in Oslo on May 22, 2026.
