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Champions League Draw 2020-21: Schedule of Dates for Group-Stage Fixtures
October 1, 2020
The 2020-21 UEFA Champions League draw was held Thursday, with reigning champions Bayern Munich drawn in Group A alongside Atletico Madrid, Red Bull Salzburg and Lokomotiv Moscow.
Group G will showcase the latest chapter in the rivalry between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, as Juventus and Barcelona were drawn together in a pool also featuring Dynamo Kyiv and Ferencvaros.
Here's a look at the complete draw:
Play in the group stage is scheduled to kick off Oct. 20:
- Matchday 1: Oct. 20-21
- Matchday 2: Oct. 27-28
- Matchday 3: Nov. 3-4
- Matchday 4: Nov. 24-25
- Matchday 5: Dec. 1-2
- Matchday 6: Dec. 8-9
The draw for the round of 16 will be held Dec. 14 in Nyon, Switzerland.
There were rumors earlier in the summer linking Messi with a blockbuster move to Juve, which would have brought the sport's two biggest superstars of a generation together in the same attack. The Barca legend ultimately stayed with the Spanish club, however.
It will mark the first time since Ronaldo joined Juventus two years ago that the pair have played against one another. They last faced off in May 2018, when Ronaldo's Real Madrid drew 2-2 with Messi's Barcelona in La Liga and both players scored.
Meanwhile, Manchester United and 2020 UCL finalists Paris Saint-Germain were also drawn into the same group. They'll meet for the first time since their memorable encounter in the round of 16 in 2019, in which PSG took a 2-0 lead in the first leg only for United to win 3-1 in Paris in the second. Marcus Rashford's penalty in the 94th minute sealed a dramatic aggregate win on away goals and a spot in the quarterfinals.
Bayern and Manchester City will head into the tournament as the co-favorites (+450), per Oddschecker. They are followed by Liverpool (+600), PSG (+1000), Real Madrid (+1100), Juventus (+1400) and Barcelona (+1600).
Real Madrid hold the all-time record as owners of 13 UCL titles, with AC Milan (7), Bayern (6), Liverpool (6) and Barca (5) being the other clubs with at least five championships.