Arsenal Champions League pot revealed with final opponents as new draw explained

A new dawn of European football is upon us with the revamped Champions League set to kick off. With major changes and tweaks to the format, model, and even anthem of the 2024/25 club football showpiece competition, it will look significantly different from last season.

For Arsenal that was the first time they had been back among the elite of the continent for seven years. They head into the Champions League this time around as even more dangerous opponents.

The Gunners have ambitions to go deep, attempting to improve on their respectable quarter-final finish in Mikel Arteta's first attempt. They will have to play at least two more games to get to that point this time round though with a fresh group phase in place.

Instead of having eight separate mini-leagues of four, all the teams - increased to 36 - will be placed in the same group, forming one giant table. Alongside this, there will be eight matches in the league phase rather than the previous six.

Games will still be split equally with four at home and four away, but ties will not be repeated, so it will be eight different opponents for Arsenal to prepare for. The end goal, after these games, is to be in the top eight.

Reach that point and there is a safe passage through to an orthodox last-16. However, should Arsenal come between ninth and 24th they will be pitted in a two-legged knockout play-off, or effective round-of-32, to get into the final bracket.

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Those 25th and below will be sent packing. There is no saving grace of falling into the Europa League either.

The model is designed to see more blockbuster clashes between the biggest sides. This is orchestrated by a seeding system that will ensure Arsenal play two teams from each of the four pots. Instead of a standard draw, of the likes that we have become accustomed to in recent years, it will be sorted by a computer.

Gone are the days of witnessing Champions League legends slowly draw out names from several clear bowls. Instead, due to the structure being introduced, dedicated UEFA software will be used. This will be independently audited to maintain fairness.

Teams from the same country/league will be kept apart, as was standard in previous years, so Arsenal cannot face Manchester City, Liverpool, or Aston Villa. However, unlike before, when teams wouldn't face another from their pot, there will be some high-profile fixtures immediately.

Here, football.london takes you through the full set of pots for the draw, and every team that Arsenal can play. The pots are determined by UEFA coefficient points with the list below being ordered from highest to lowest.

Pot one:

• Manchester City

• Bayern Munich

• Real Madrid

• Paris Saint-Germain

• Liverpool

• Inter

• Borussia Dortmund

• RB Leipzig

• Barcelona

Pot two:

• Bayer Leverkusen

• Atletico Madrid

• Atalanta

• Juventus

• Benfica

• Arsenal

• Club Brugge

• Shakhtar Donetsk

• AC Milan

Pot three:

• Feyenoord

• Sporting CP

• PSV Eindhoven

• Dinamo Zagreb

• RB Salzburg

• Lille

• Crvena Zvezda

• Young Boys

• Celtic

Pot four:

• Slovan Bratislava

• AS Monaco

• Sparta Praha

• Aston Villa

• Bologna

• Girona

• Stuttgart

• Sturm Graz

• Stade Brestois

Arsenal will play two teams from each pot, and cannot be drawn against more than two teams from each country/league/association. On the face of it, a best-case scenario might include RB Leipzig, Barcelona, Shakhtar Donetsk, Club Brugge, Young Boys, Celtic, Stade Brestois, and Sturm Graz. On the other hand, if things go badly, it could be: Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Feyenoord, Sporting CP, Monaco, and Bologna.