Liverpool cannot host Real Madrid at Anfield in 2026-27 Champions League league phase

Liverpool will not be able to face Real Madrid at Anfield during the league phase of the 2026-27 Champions League because of a UEFA rule designed to prevent the same fixture being repeated at the same stadium for three successive seasons.

The draw for the league phase of the Champions League will take place on Thursday.

Liverpool have hosted Real Madrid at Anfield in the league phase in each of the past two seasons. However, UEFA regulations mean that the two clubs cannot be paired together again with Liverpool as the home team in the 2026-27 league phase.

A meeting between the sides is still possible in Thursday’s draw, but Real Madrid would have to host the game at Santiago Bernabeu.

The restriction was introduced by UEFA to avoid the same two teams meeting in the same competition, with the same club hosting the fixture, across three consecutive seasons.

Article 16.03 of the regulations for last season’s Champions League states:

“The UEFA Club Competitions Committee may set alternative draw conditions in accordance with the principles established by the Club Competitions Committee and may amend any of the draw conditions to avoid conflicts and/or take account of any relevant constraints in light of decisions taken by the UEFA Executive Committee.”

The Club Competitions Committee subsequently agreed an additional condition for the 2026-27 Champions League draw. It states that the same fixture cannot be repeated in the same competition with the same home team for three consecutive seasons.

In practical terms, if two clubs met in the league phase in 2024-25, and were drawn against each other again in 2025-26 with the same team playing at home, they could not be paired for a third successive season with that same home side in 2026-27.

That means Liverpool could still host Real Madrid at Anfield later in the competition, but only in the knockout stages.

Liverpool have won both of their previous league-phase meetings with Real Madrid.

The first came in 2024-25, the inaugural season of the Champions League’s new format. Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo scored in the second half as Liverpool secured a 2-0 victory at Anfield.

Approximately 12 months later, Mac Allister again proved decisive. The Argentina midfielder scored the only goal of the match with a header in the 61st minute.

The latest draw restriction therefore applies specifically to the league phase and does not prevent Liverpool and Real Madrid from being drawn together in the knockout rounds. It also does not rule out a league-phase fixture altogether: the match can still take place, but Real Madrid must be the home team at Santiago Bernabeu.