Champions League: Ranking All 36 Teams by Difficulty of Their League Phase Fixtures
After the league phase draw on Thursday evening, all 36 clubs competing in this season's Champions League have been ranked according to how tough their first eight matches appear. The competition resumes on September 8, with current champions Paris Saint-Germain aiming for a third straight title as they try to solidify their standing as Europe’s top team.
Challengers include last year's finalists and Premier League winners Arsenal, alongside Manchester City, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, and Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid. The new league-phase format, now in its third year, gives an early glimpse into which sides might be genuine contenders. Some teams face a much tougher schedule than others right from the start.
Easiest Fixtures: Stuttgart Tops, Inter Near Bottom
The club with the least challenging league phase based on their opponents’ Elo ratings—a system measuring relative team strength—is VfB Stuttgart. They have a rating advantage of 12 points over 35th-ranked Inter Milan. Yet Stuttgart still face formidable foes like Italian champions, Atletico Madrid, and Galatasaray, proving there are no easy paths in Europe.
In third place among the easiest draws is Real Madrid, managed by Jose Mourinho, looking to end a two-year trophy drought. Their opponents average an Elo score of -28, comparable to Shakhtar Donetsk. Shakhtar face the extra hurdle of playing all games away from home, having arranged to host matches at Chelsea's stadium this season.
Other teams with relatively smooth schedules include LASK (-21), Fenerbahce, and Porto (both -18), while newcomers Slovan Bratislava and Viking hope their draws set them up for historic campaigns. Viking is making their Champions League debut, while Slovan are Slovakian champions.
- Rank 36: VfB Stuttgart – Opponent Avg Elo: -48
- Rank 35: Inter Milan – -36
- Rank 34: Real Madrid – -28
- Rank 33: Shakhtar Donetsk – -28
- Rank 32: LASK – -21
- Rank 31: Fenerbahce – -18
- Rank 30: Porto – -18
- Rank 29: Slovan Bratislava – -17
- Rank 28: Viking – -16
Mid-Range Fixtures: Liverpool Among Easier English Clubs
Real Betis and AEK Athens sit in the easier half of the middle tier. AEK powered through their playoff with a 4-0 win over Levski Sofia. Liverpool boasts the easiest slate of fixtures among English teams, with an average opponent rating of -9, a helpful break for new coach Andoni Iraola.
Barcelona shares this same rating, while Roma (-8) and PSV (-6) have slightly tougher runs. Borussia Dortmund, who have cooled off since their 2024 Wembley final appearance, face only two teams rated above them — Arsenal and Inter Milan — giving hope for a straightforward progression.
Sporting CP stands exactly mid-pack with an average opponent Elo of 0, facing both Manchester clubs and Barcelona, but also matches against lower-ranked teams like RC Lens and LASK.
- Rank 27: Real Betis – -14
- Rank 26: AEK Athens – -10
- Rank 25: Liverpool – -9
- Rank 24: Barcelona – -9
- Rank 23: Roma – -8
- Rank 22: PSV – -6
- Rank 21: RB Leipzig – -2
- Rank 20: Borussia Dortmund – -1
- Rank 19: Sporting CP – 0
Challenging Schedules: Arsenal, PSG, Bayern Among Harder Draws
Lille and Napoli both face opponents with an average Elo rating of +3. Aston Villa returned to the Champions League with the 16th toughest schedule. After a poor summer transfer window and a heavy defeat in their season opener, Unai Emery’s squad will need to improve dramatically to compete with the elite.
Galatasaray and Arsenal share a +7 rating, with many expecting the Gunners to build on last season’s success and possibly win their first major European title. Mikel Arteta will hope recent domestic triumph sparks further victories.
Feyenoord and Villarreal both have an +11 rating, matching that of Bayern Munich. Reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain face the toughest schedule in this group at +12, hosting Spanish, Turkish, and Slovakian champions while traveling to Manchester City, Aston Villa, and surprise qualifiers Como.
- Rank 18: Lille – +3
- Rank 17: Napoli – +3
- Rank 16: Aston Villa – +5
- Rank 15: Galatasaray – +7
- Rank 14: Arsenal – +7
- Rank 13: Feyenoord – +11
- Rank 12: Villarreal – +11
- Rank 11: Bayern Munich – +11
- Rank 10: Paris Saint-Germain – +12
Most Difficult Fixtures: Manchester City and Sabah Face Toughest Challenge
Slavia Prague ranks ninth, relying on their passionate home crowd to help them through a brutal league phase. Atletico Madrid follow closely; under Diego Simeone, they remain a threat despite expectations otherwise after reaching the semi-finals last season.
Bodo/Glimt, who stunned many with their underdog run last year, now face a daunting schedule that makes repeating that feat unlikely. Meanwhile, Manchester United, Como, and Club Brugge may struggle due to limited recent experience at this level.
RC Lens has the third most difficult fixture list, with Manchester City just behind in second. The latter’s star players like Erling Haaland will need peak form to avoid a tough knockout stage. The team with the hardest schedule is debutants Sabah from Azerbaijan, a club founded only nine years ago facing what looks like a nearly impossible task.
- Rank 9: Slavia Prague – +12
- Rank 8: Atletico Madrid – +13
- Rank 7: Bodo/Glimt – +13
- Rank 6: Manchester United – +16
- Rank 5: Como – +25
- Rank 4: Club Brugge – +26
- Rank 3: RC Lens – +33
- Rank 2: Manchester City – +39
- Rank 1: Sabah – +42
