Champions League Fantasy 2026-27
Thirty six clubs, eight matches each, one trophy in Madrid. Build a Champions League pool or snake draft league and play the whole competition with your group.
Get notified when Champions League Fantasy launches
How Champions League Fantasy Works
Draft Rules
Pick your squad once and ride it through the competition. There is no weekly lineup homework and no transfer market to babysit. You set the roster size, the scoring, and the deadline, and your group plays the same competition together from the first matchday to the final.
Two ways to build a roster:
Pool. Everyone picks from the same player list. No draft to schedule and nobody has to be online at a set time. The easiest way to get a large group playing, and the right pick when half your friends are casual.
Snake draft. A live draft where each player comes off the board once. If your group is going to argue about who gets the best striker in Europe, this is the format built for that argument.
Tournament Format
The Champions League changed shape in 2024 and a lot of people still play it like the old group stage. Here is how it actually works now.
League phase (September to January):
All 36 clubs sit in one table. Every club plays eight matches, four at home and four away, against opponents drawn from four pots of nine. There are no groups. The phase closes with all 36 clubs playing at the same time on the final matchday.
Knockout play-offs (February):
Finish in the top eight and you skip this round entirely. Finish anywhere from 9th to 24th and you play a two legged tie for the last eight places in the Round of 16. Finish 25th or lower and your European season is over.
Round of 16 through semi-finals (March to May):
Twenty four clubs enter the knockout phase and every tie is played over two legs.
Final (June):
One match, no second leg, at the Estadio Metropolitano in Madrid.
The Bracket Is Drawn All At Once
The draw for the Round of 16, the quarter-finals and the semi-finals is held on a single date in February. Every path to Madrid is set before a knockout ball is kicked. Unlike most tournaments, there is no fresh draw between rounds, so from late February you can see exactly who your players would have to get past.
Scoring System
Scoring runs off real match events across every stage of the competition. Both legs of a knockout tie count, and so does every league phase match. Founding Members can change any of these values for their own league.
🧤 Goalkeepers
- Playing 60+ min: +2
- Under 60 min: +1
- Goal scored: +10
- Assist: +3
- Team clean sheet (60+ min): +4
- Each save: +1/3
- Penalty save: +5
- Goal conceded (60+ min): -0.5
- Yellow card: -1
- Red card: -3
- Own goal: -2
- Penalty missed: -2
🛡️ Defenders
- Playing 60+ min: +2
- Under 60 min: +1
- Goal scored: +6
- Assist: +3
- Team clean sheet (60+ min): +4
- Goal conceded (60+ min): -0.5
- Yellow card: -1
- Red card: -3
- Own goal: -2
- Penalty missed: -2
⚽ Midfielders
- Playing 60+ min: +2
- Under 60 min: +1
- Goal scored: +5
- Assist: +3
- Clean sheet (60+ min): +1
- Yellow card: -1
- Red card: -3
- Own goal: -2
- Penalty missed: -2
🎯 Forwards
- Playing 60+ min: +2
- Under 60 min: +1
- Goal scored: +4
- Assist: +3
- Yellow card: -1
- Red card: -3
- Own goal: -2
- Penalty missed: -2
Clean sheet and goals conceded use the team result. If your player's team concedes zero goals in the match, every GK/DEF/MID on that team who plays 60+ min earns the clean-sheet bonus. GKs and DEFs lose 0.5 pts per goal their team concedes (60+ min gate).
Why Play Champions League Fantasy?
Europe's Best, Every Week
The best clubs on the continent playing each other from September. You are not drafting around a weak fixture list.
The Schedule Is The Draw
With no groups, a club's eight opponents are effectively a difficulty draw. Two clubs can finish level on points having played completely different competitions. Reading that gap is the edge.
The February Cliff
Eight clubs get a bye and a month of rest. Sixteen play two extra legs to reach the same round. That shows up in fatigue, rotation and minutes, which is exactly what fantasy scoring measures.
Free to Start
Create an account, build your league, invite your group. Costs nothing.
Tournament Timeline
September 8, 2026 through June 5, 2027
- League Phase Draw: August 27, 2026, Nyon
- Matchday 1: September 8 to 10, 2026
- Matchdays 2 and 3: October 13, 14, 20 and 21, 2026
- Matchdays 4 and 5: November 3, 4, 24 and 25, 2026
- Matchday 6: December 8 and 9, 2026
- Matchdays 7 and 8: January 19, 20 and 27, 2027 (all 36 clubs play at once on the final matchday)
- Knockout Play-off Draw: January 29, 2027
- Knockout Play-offs: February 16, 17, 23 and 24, 2027
- Round of 16, Quarter-final and Semi-final Draw: February 26, 2027
- Round of 16: March 9, 10, 16 and 17, 2027
- Quarter-finals: April 6, 7, 13 and 14, 2027
- Semi-finals: April 27, 28, May 4 and 5, 2027
- Final: June 5, 2027, Estadio Metropolitano, Madrid
Dates are published by UEFA and subject to change.
Make It Yours
Format
Pool or snake draft, set when you create the league.
Roster
You choose the squad size and the position requirements.
Deadline
Lock picks whenever suits your group.
Custom scoring (Founding Member)
Founding Members can rewrite the scoring rules for their league, category by category, plus track dues for their group. Everything else on this page is free. Learn about Founding Member
Frequently Asked Questions
How many teams are in the Champions League?
Thirty six clubs reach the league phase. Twenty nine qualify directly through their domestic leagues and seven come through the summer qualifying rounds.
When does the Champions League start?
The league phase draw is August 27, 2026 and Matchday 1 runs September 8 to 10, 2026. The final is June 5, 2027 in Madrid.
Are there still groups?
No. The group stage was replaced in 2024. All 36 clubs now sit in a single table and each one plays eight matches against different opponents.
How many teams make the knockout rounds?
Twenty four. The top eight in the league phase go directly to the Round of 16, and clubs ranked 9th to 24th play a knockout play-off round in February for the remaining eight places.
What formats can my league play?
Pool and snake draft. Pool means everyone picks from the same list with no live draft to schedule. Snake draft means a live draft where each player is taken once.
Do both legs of a tie count?
Yes. Every knockout match counts toward scoring, including both legs of two legged ties, all the way to the final.
Is it free?
Yes. Creating an account and running a league costs nothing. Founding Member is optional and unlocks custom scoring and dues tracking.
When can I create a Champions League league?
Not yet. Leagues are still being built. Add your email and we will tell you the moment they open.
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Thirty six clubs, eight matchdays, and a final in Madrid. Get notified the moment you can create your Champions League league.
Get notified when Champions League Fantasy launches
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