The Gunners will be competing in European football’s elite club competition for the first time in six seasons, having finished as runners-up to Manchester City in the Premier League in 2022-23.
Arsene Wenger led the club to the final in 2006, when they lost 2-1 to Barcelona in Paris after having goalkeeper Jens Lehmann sent off in the 18th minute.
Sol Campbell headed the 10-man Gunners in front before half-time, but Samuel Eto’o levelled with 14 minutes left and substitute Juliano Belletti netted the winner moments later.
The first group game of this year’s competition will be on September 19 or 20, with two and three-week gaps between matchdays until the sixth and final group game on December 12 or 13.
After the winter break, the Champions League returns in February with the last-16 ties, before quarter-final matches are played in March and semi-finals in April, before the final at Wembley on June 1.
It will be the eighth time Wembley has hosted a European Cup final and the third during the Champions League era and the 2011 and 2013 finals.
The Champions League is entering its final season in its usual format of 32 teams, split into eight groups of four who play each other home and away.
The two group winners advance into the round of 16, with the winners seeded and runners-up unseeded. The third-placed team enter the Europa League play-off round, while the team who finishes bottom of the group is eliminated from European competition entirely.
The 2024/25 competition will see an increase in teams to 36, who will compete in a single league. Each team will play eight matches against eight different teams, four at home and four away.
The top eight sides in the league will qualify automatically for the knockout stage, while the teams finishing in ninth to 24th place will compete in a two-legged play-off to secure their path into the last 16.
Two of the additional places will go to the associations with the best collective performance by their clubs in the previous season. That could mean if should English teams perform well in European competitions during 2023/24, the top five teams in the Premier League may qualify for this new version of the Champions League.
Champions League 2023-24 Group Stage
Group A: BAYERN MUNICH, MANCHESTER UNITED, COPENHAGEN, GALATASARAY
Group B: SEVILLA, ARSENAL, PSV EINDHOVEN, RC LENS
Group C: NAPOLI, REAL MADRID, BRAGA, UNION BERLIN
Group D: BENFICA, INTER MILAN, RB SALZBURG, REAL SOCIEDAD
Group E: FEYENOORD, ATLETICO MADRID, LAZIO, CELTIC
Group F: PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN, BORUSSIA DORTMUND, AC MILAN, NEWCASTLE
Group G: MANCHESTER CITY, RB LEIPZIG, CRVENA ZVEZDA,
YOUNG BOYS
Group H: BARCELONA, PORTO, SHAKHTAR DONETSK, ROYAL ANTWERP
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
