Champions League Matchday 1: Key stats and what to look out for in every game
Thursday, September 3, 2026
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Get the lowdown on every UEFA Champions League Matchday 1 contest with our stat pack.
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The league phase of the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League kicks off on Tuesday with a number of intriguing encounters set for Matchday 1.
We take a look at the key facts and stats from every fixture as another season of club football's elite competition gets under way.
All matches kick off at 21:00 CET unless stated.
Tuesday 8 September
- This is the fourth meeting between the sides. Club Brugge won 1-0 at home on Matchday 4 of the 2024/25 Champions League, before Aston Villa won 3-1 away and 3-0 at home in the round of 16.
- Club Brugge have lost just three of their last 22 UEFA home matches (W13 D6). They've also scored three or more goals in six of their last seven UEFA home matches.
- The Belgian side are participating in the Champions League proper for the eighth time in the last nine seasons.
- Aston Villa won 13 of their 15 matches during last season's successful Europa League campaign (L2).
- Villa have lost just three of their last 21 UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (W16 D2).
- Unai Emery's side have kept nine clean sheets in their last 16 European games.
- AEK Athens have won nine of their last 11 UEFA home matches (D1 L1).
- AEK are making their sixth Champions League group stage/league phase appearance, but their first since 2018/19.
- Only one of AEK's last 22 Champions League group stage/league phase matches has finished goalless.
- This is LASK’s UEFA Champions League group stage/league phase debut.
- The Austrian side won the league and cup double last season, their first major honours since lifting both competitions in 1964/65.
- LASK ended an 11-match winless European run (D4 L7) when they defeated Celtic 5-1 in the second leg of their play-off round tie to qualify for the league phase.
- Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé will move joint-fifth in the list of all-time Champions League top scorers if he nets. He is currently on 70 goals, one behind Raúl González.
- Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will make his 100th Champions League appearance if he plays, becoming the 56th person to reach the landmark.
- Madrid coach José Mourinho faces his former team Inter, who he won the Champions League with in the 2009/10 season to complete a treble.
- Madrid have won six of the last seven matches between these sides (L1).
- They have also triumphed in 19 of their last 21 games against Italian clubs (L2).
- Los Blancos have won their Matchday 1 fixture in 17 of their last 19 Champions League campaigns (L2).
- Inter are winless in their last 13 away matches against Spanish sides (D4 L9), since a 5-1 victory at Valencia in the 2004/05 group stage.
- The Nerazzurri have failed to score in only two of their last 19 Champions League games.
- None of Inter's last 15 Champions League league phase matches have finished level (W11 D4).
- The only previous encounter between these sides was a 4-0 victory at home for Dortmund on Matchday 5 last season.
- Dortmund have lost only two of their last 15 matches at home against Spanish teams (W9 D4) and have won the last three.
- BVB scored four goals in each of their first three league phase games last season.
- Villarreal have won only two of their last ten matches against German opponents (D4 L4).
- Iñigo Pérez's side are making successive Champions League group stage/league phase appearances for the first time.
- None of Villarreal’s last 31 matches in the Champions League proper finished goalless.
- This is Porto’s 28th participation in the Champions League group stage/league phase – the fourth-most of any club, behind Real Madrid (31), Barcelona (31) and Bayern (30).
- Porto have won only two of their last 16 matches against English opponents (D4 L10).
- The Dragons have lost only one of their last 14 home UEFA matches (W10 D3).
- This is Man City's 150th European Cup match.
- City have lost only two of their 11 matches against Portuguese teams (W6 D3) but were beaten in the most recent, 4-1 at Sporting CP on Matchday 4 of the 2024/25 Champions League.
- City have lost six of their last nine Champions League away matches (W2 D1).
- Lille have lost only one of their nine home matches against Spanish teams (W3 D5), with their most recent a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid on Matchday 2 of the 2024/25 Champions League.
- LOSC have scored in each of their last nine matches in the Champions League proper.
- None of Lille's last 34 European matches have finished goalless.
- Real Betis' only previous European Cup participation came in 2005/06, when they finished third in their group.
- Betis have lost only two of their last seven matches against French teams (D3 L2).
- The Spanish side have lost just one of their last ten UEFA competition group stage/league phase matches (W7 D2).
Wednesday 9 September
- Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal needs two goals to equal the record for most Champions League goals scored aged 20 or under, currently held by Kylian Mbappé (13).
- The only previous encounter between these sides came in the 1974/75 European Cup second round; they drew 0-0 in Rotterdam before Barcelona won 3-0 at the Camp Nou.
- Barcelona have scored 50 goals in the two editions of the league phase since its introduction in 2024/25, eight more than any other team, with Bayern second on 42.
- Barça have not kept a clean sheet in their last 15 Champions League matches.
- Feyenoord have lost eight of their last 11 matches against Spanish teams (W2 D1).
- The Dutch side have failed to score in only two of their last 15 Champions League group stage/league phase games .
- Feyenoord are winless in their last 11 European away games (D2 L9).
- Stuttgart are aiming to win a Matchday 1 fixture in the Champions League for the first time, having drawn one and lost three of their four opening fixtures in their previous four campaigns.
- The German side won all their four home matches in the league phase of last season's Europa League.
- This is Stuttgart's second Champions League participation in the last three seasons, after also featuring in 2024/25.
- Viking have qualified for a UEFA group stage/league phase for only the second time, following their participation in the 2005/06 UEFA Cup group stage.
- They are the second Norwegian debutants in a row in the Champions League proper, after Bodø/Glimt last season.
- Viking have won only two of their 11 matches against German opposition (D3 L6) and are winless in their six away fixtures (D1 L5).
- Ousmane Dembélé will move joint-fifth for Champions League goals for French players next time he scores while Ferran Torres will rise to joint-sixth – alongside current Paris coach Luis Enrique – for Spanish players if he nets.
- Holders Paris are looking to become only the second team in the Champions League era to win three titles in a row, after Real Madrid in 2015/16, 2016/17 and 2017/18.
- Luis Enrique's side have won on Matchday 1 in each of the last four seasons, with no goals conceded in the three most recent.
- Paris have had only one goalless draw in their last 118 European matches.
- These two teams' only previous meeting came in the 2011/12 Europa League group stage, when a 0-0 draw in Bratislava on Matchday 3 was followed by a 1-0 home win for Paris on Matchday 4.
- Slovan Bratislava are unbeaten in their last seven UEFA competition matches (W5 D2).
- Slovan lost all eight games in their previous league phase campaign in 2024/25.
- These two teams also met at Anfield on Matchday 1 last season, Liverpool winning 3-2.
- Liverpool have finished in the top three of the league phase in each of the last two seasons, coming first in 2024/25 and third in 2025/26.
- The Reds have won their last six league phase matches against Spanish teams, with four clean sheets in the most recent five.
- Atleti captain Koke will become the 28th player to reach 150 UEFA club competition appearances if he features.
- Atleti have never won a Champions League group stage/league phase fixture against an English team, drawing four and losing six.
- Diego Simeone is the longest-serving coach in the 2026/27 league phase, having taken charge at Atleti in December 2011.
- Atleti have failed to score in only two of their last 24 matches in the group stage/league phase.
- This is the first meeting between Sporting CP and Galatasaray, despite the clubs having played more than 700 UEFA fixtures between them.
- Sporting CP equalled their best-ever European Cup performance last season by reaching the quarter-finals, where they lost 0-1 on aggregate to Arsenal.
- The Portuguese side have won four of their last five matches against Turkish opponents (L1).
- Last season, Galatasaray reached the round of 16 for the first time since 2013/14, where they were beaten by Liverpool.
- Galatasaray are winless in their last five matches against Portuguese teams (D1 L4).
- They have won their opening match in only one of their last ten Champions League campaigns (D4 L5).
- These teams have met four times, Arsenal winning three to Napoli’s one. Arsenal won both legs of the 2018/19 Europa League quarter-final, 2-0 at home and 1-0 away. Each side won 2-0 at home in the 2013/14 Champions League group stage, with current Gunners coach Mikel Arteta sent off in the defeat in Naples.
- Napoli have won only two of their last ten matches in the Champions League proper (D3 L5).
- The Serie A outfit have lost their last three Champions League games against English teams.
- Last season's runners-up, Arsenal had the fewest goals conceded (7) and most clean sheets (9) in 2025/26. They were unbeaten in regular time across their 15 games (W11 D4).
- The Gunners have won seven of their last ten matches against Italian teams (D1 L2).
- Arsenal are unbeaten on Matchday 1 in their last nine European campaigns, winning seven and drawing two.
Thursday 10 September
- The only previous meeting between these sides came on Matchday 5 of the 2024/25 Champions League, PSV winning 3-2 at home.
- PSV have lost their Matchday 1 fixture in each of their last five Champions League campaigns. Their last opening win came in 2015/16, when they beat Manchester United 2-1 in Eindhoven.
- PSV have won their last three Champions League matches against Ukrainian opponents.
- This is Shakhtar's 20th Champions League group stage/league phase participation – the most of any Ukrainian team.
- Shakhtar have lost only two of their last eight European group stage/league phase games (W5 D1).
- The Pitmen have lost only two of their last seven matches against Dutch teams (W3 D2).
- Fenerbahçe have reached the Champions League proper for the first time since 2008/09, having made six group stage appearances.
- They have won their last three home matches against Italian opponents, keeping clean sheets in all of them.
- This is Fenerbahçe's sixth successive season in a UEFA competition group stage/league phase.
- Roma's last Champions League participation came in 2018/19, when they reached the round of 16.
- The Giallorossi have won their last five matches against Turkish opponents, four without conceding.
- Roma have reached the knockout phase in seven of their last eight Champions League group stage/league phase participations.
- Bayern forward Harry Kane will become the third quickest player to 55 Champions League goals if he scores. He has 54 goals in 70 games currently - the only two quicker than him are Erling Haaland (49 games) and Ruud van Nistelrooy (70 games).
- Manuel Neuer will move joint-eighth in the list of all-time UEFA club competition appearances if he features. He is currently on 170 appearances, one behind Robert Lewandowski.
- Bayern have won their opening match in each of their last 22 Champions League campaigns. The last time they failed to do so on Matchday 1 was in September 2002, a 2-3 home loss against Deportivo.
- The German champions are unbeaten in 38 home matches in the Champions League group stage/league phase, with 36 wins and 2 draws since a 2-3 defeat by Manchester City in December 2013.
- Bayern need one goal to become only the second club to reach 900 in European Cup history after Real Madrid, who had scored 1,137 before 2026/27.
- Bodø/Glimt made their debut in the league phase last season and reached the round of 16.
- The Norwegian side have scored two or more goals in 11 of their last 12 UEFA competition matches.
- Glimt have drawn their two previous away matches against German opponents, most recently a 2-2 draw at Dortmund on Matchday 6 last season. Bodø have never beaten a German side in UEFA competition.
- This will be Manchester United’s 300th European Cup match; they are the first English club to reach the milestone.
- United have won only one of their last seven Champions League group stage/league phase games (D2 L4).
- They are making their 26th appearance in the Champions League proper – the most by an English club. This is their first participation since 2023/24, when they were eliminated in the group stage.
- Sabah are participating in a UEFA competition group stage/league phase for the first time.
- They are only the second club from Azerbaijan to reach the Champions League group stage/league phase, after Qarabağ in 2017/18 and 2025/26.
- Sabah won six of their eight games in qualifying (L2).
- The only previous encounter between these teams came in the 1995/96 UEFA Cup third round, Slavia Praha progressing 1-0 on aggregate after a 0-0 draw in Czechia and a 1-0 win in France.
- Slavia are making successive Champions League group stage/league phase appearances for the first time.
- Slavia are without a win in their last 19 matches in the Champions League proper (D7 L12), since a 2-1 home victory against Steaua on Matchday 1 of their debut campaign in September 2007.
- This is Lens' fourth participation in the Champions League proper, after 1998/99, 2002/03 and 2023/24.
- None of Lens' 18 Champions League group stage matches finished goalless.
- Lens failed to score in only three of their 18 Champions League group stage matches.
- This is Como's first season in UEFA competition, with Matchday 1 their debut fixture.
- The Italian side conceded the fewest goals in Serie A last season, just 29.
- Como coach coach Cesc Fàbregas made 104 Champions League appearances for Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea.
- Leipzig have won two of their three away matches against Italian teams (L1), although they lost their most recent, 1-0 to Inter on Matchday 5 of the 2024/25 Champions League.
- Leipzig have not kept a clean sheet in their last 18 European matches.
- They have won only one of their last ten matches in the Champions League proper (D1 L8).
Further ahead
- Matchday 2 starts with Azerbaijani side Sabah hosting Champions League football for the first time in their short history as they take on Slavia Praha in one of Tuesday's early kick-offs.
- Later that night Norwegian outfit Viking also make their maiden home Champions League appearance, facing six-time winners Bayern in Stavanger.
- In Wednesday's most eye-catching Matchday 2 games, 2023 winners Man City host all-conquering Paris while Real Madrid coach José Mourinho returns to face his former club Roma at Stadio Olimpico.
