Who Are Real Madrid Playing in 2025–26 Champions League?

It is the competition that has come to define Real Madrid more than any other.

Real Madrid want to extend their competition record. / Diego Souto/Getty Images

After Real Madrid said farewell to Carlo Ancelotti for the second time, Los Blancos have tasked new manager Xabi Alonso with delivering the club’s 16th European crown.

Ancelotti won three of those across his two spells at the Santiago Bernabéu and is a tough act to follow. But Alonso is no stranger to success at this level. As a player, he was part of La Décima in 2013–14, while his transformative impact as a coach at former club Bayer Leverkusen was what prompted Madrid to hire him this summer—after he already turned down Liverpool last year.

Real Madrid fans and executives alike expect nothing but success in the Champions League, so the price for not getting to at least the semifinals, as Ancelotti found out, could be high.

First, eight league phase opponents stand between Real Madrid and the knockout rounds.

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Full List of Real Madrid’s 2025–26 Champions League Opponents

Team	Country	Pot
Manchester City (H)	England	1
Liverpool (A)	England	1
Juventus (H)	Italy	2
Benfica (A)	Portugal	2
Marseille (H)	France	3
Olympiacos (A)	Greece	3
Monaco (H)	France	4
Kairat Almaty (A)	Kazakhstan	4

The league phase will contain plenty of extremes for Real Madrid. There is perhaps no tougher match than a trip to Liverpool, which also means an early return to Anfield for Trent Alexnader-Arnold. It’s also a fifth year in a row facing Manchester City and Pep Guardiola. At the opposite end of that spectrum, Kairat Almaty were delighted just to qualify for the first time—that being said an 8,000-mile round trip to Kazakhstan will not be for the faint hearted.

Encounters against Benfica, Monaco, Marseille, Olympiacos, and even a Juventus side far removed from its historic vintage are significantly kinder.

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2025–26 Champions League: Real Madrid’s League Phase Schedule

The full league phase schedule was released on Saturday, less than 48 hours after the draw. Real Madrid kick off their campaign at home to Marseille, and conclude away at Benfica in late January. Their toughest fixtures lie in between.

Round	Date	Fixture
Matchday 1	September 16	Real Madrid vs. Marseille
Matchday 2	September 30	Kairat Almaty vs. Real Madrid
Matchday 3	October 22	Real Madrid vs. Juventus
Matchday 4	November 4	Liverpool vs. Real Madrid
Matchday 5	November 26	Olympiacos vs. Real Madrid
Matchday 6	December 10	Real Madrid vs. Man City
Matchday 7	January 20	Real Madrid vs. Monaco
Matchday 8	January 28	Benfica vs. Real Madrid

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