Atletico Madrid handed Liverpool and Bayern Munich tests in Champions League league phase

Atletico Madrid will begin their 2026-27 Champions League campaign away to Liverpool before hosting Manchester United and Bayern Munich in a demanding league-phase schedule announced by UEFA.

The Spanish club will face Liverpool and Bayern Munich, both drawn from the first seeding pot, as they chase the first Champions League title in their history.

Atletico’s campaign starts at Anfield against Liverpool on 9 September. Their first home match will come on 13 October, when Manchester United visit the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.

They then travel to face Stuttgart at MHPArena on 20 October before meeting Bayern Munich in Madrid on 3 November.

The remaining fixtures will see Atletico host Viking on 25 November, visit PSV Eindhoven at Philips Stadion on 9 December and travel to face Bodø/Glimt at Aspmyra on 19 January.

Their league-phase programme concludes at home against Fenerbahce on 27 January at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.

The full fixture list is:

– Liverpool v Atletico Madrid – 9 September, Anfield – Atletico Madrid v Manchester United – 13 October, Riyadh Air Metropolitano – Stuttgart v Atletico Madrid – 20 October, MHPArena – Atletico Madrid v Bayern Munich – 3 November, Riyadh Air Metropolitano – Atletico Madrid v Viking – 25 November, Riyadh Air Metropolitano – PSV Eindhoven v Atletico Madrid – 9 December, Philips Stadion – Bodø/Glimt v Atletico Madrid – 19 January, Aspmyra – Atletico Madrid v Fenerbahce – 27 January, Riyadh Air Metropolitano

The meeting with Liverpool will renew a recent European rivalry. The clubs last faced one another in 2021, in the group stage, when Liverpool won 2-0 at Anfield.

Atletico’s most recent encounter with Bayern Munich came in the 2020-21 group stage. That match ended in a 1-1 draw between the two sides.

The Madrid club enter the league phase aiming to go further than ever before in their pursuit of the Champions League trophy. Their schedule includes two fixtures against prominent English opponents, as well as home and away matches against teams from Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and Turkey.

UEFA has now confirmed the dates and venues for all eight of Atletico Madrid’s league-phase matches. The format will give the club four home fixtures and four away games, with the opening challenge coming against Liverpool on Merseyside before the schedule moves to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano in October.