play Live Sign upShow navigation menuplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upEXPLAINERSport|FootballWhat are the key matches to watch as the UEFA Champions League returns?Atletico vs Man United and Man City vs PSG headline the Champions League match day two action as the competition returns.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoPSG's Ferran Torres celebrates after scoring a hat-trick against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League [File: Franco Arland/Getty Images]By Manasi PathakPublished On 12 Oct 202612 Oct 2026The UEFA Champions League (UCL) 2026-27 enters its second round of matches this week, with 36 teams in action across Europe as clubs return to the elite football competition.
After the first set of league fixtures, two-time title holders Paris Saint-Germain lead the points table with three points, followed by six-time champions Bayern Munich and five-time winners Barcelona, who also won their opening matches.
The competition’s league phase format, now in its third year, started in September and runs until January 2027. It will be followed by the knockout rounds, with the champions crowned in early June.
Here’s all you need to know about this year’s competition:
The Champions League is an annual club competition that features the best teams from across Europe.
This season marks the third time that 36 teams will participate in the main round, an increase from 32 under the old format.
Since 2003, the UCL has featured 32 clubs split into eight groups of four, with the top two from each section advancing to the last 16.
From the 2024-25 season, the 36 clubs are pooled into a single league in a “Swiss system” more commonly associated with chess.
Earlier, participating teams played six games in the group stage, facing each opponent home and away. Now, each club plays eight games, one each against eight different opponents.
At the end of the league phase, the top eight qualify directly for the knockouts, while those between the ninth and 24th places have to compete in two-legged knockout-phase playoffs.
The UCL knockout format is straightforward – it begins with the round of 16, followed by the quarterfinals, semifinals and the final.
The knockout phase matches are scheduled for (all dates in 2027):
The key matches to follow on matchdays two and three are as follows:
Top five Champions League matches to watch next week:
Man City’s home clash with PSG headlines the upcoming round of matches, marking the troubled Etihad club’s first Champions League match since an independent commission found them guilty of breaking more than 100 Premier League financial rules.
Elsewhere, City’s crosstown rivals, under-fire Man United, are also in action this week. They head to Madrid to face an in-form Atletico, hoping to register just their third win this season.
Meanwhile, manager Jose Mourinho will face his former club AS Roma when Real travel to the Italian capital.
PSG’s Ferran Torres, who scored a hat-trick in the first UCL match, is a joint top scorer in this year’s UCL alongside Ermedin Demirovic of Stuttgart.
Also watch out for Man City’s Erling Haaland, Bayern Munich’s talented Michael Olise and PSG forward Ousmane Dembele, all of whom scored two goals in their respective UCL openers.
