UEFA ruling could impact Arsenal in Champions League draw | OneFootball

Gunners will discover their league phase opponents this week

Arsenal could be impacted by a new UEFA rule in the Champions League this season.

Mikel Arteta's side are one of the favourites to be crowned European champions after getting within touching distance in May.

Kai Havertz gave the Gunners the lead in a final that went to penalties in Budapest. Paris Saint-Germain held their nerve from the spot to defend their crown.

Arsenal will attempt to go one better this time and that campaign will begin to take shape when the league phase draw takes place on Thursday evening.

As has been the format for the last two seasons, the 36 clubs involved in the competition will play two teams from each of the four pots.

Manchester City and Liverpool are also in that pot. Arsenal cannot face them as clubs from the same country are not drawn against each other at this stage.

There is also a further limitation when it comes to Arsenal's Pot 1 opponents.

Inter Milan are one of the nine clubs confirmed as top seeds but the Gunners cannot be drawn against them away from home in the league phase.

That is due to a lesser-know rule designed to avoid certain fixtures becoming too repetitive.

The Champions League regulations state: "The UEFA Club Competitions Committee has determined an additional condition that may be applicable to the UEFA Champions League draw for the 2026/27 season, deciding that any individual fixture between the same two teams may not be repeated in the same competition with the same home team for three consecutive seasons.

"This means that if any teams that already played against each other in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in the 2024/25 season are again drawn against each other, with the same home team, in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in the 2025/26 season, those teams will not be able to be drawn against each other with the same home team in the 2026/27 season."

Arsenal have played Inter at the San Siro in each of the past two seasons.

Arsenal beat Inter Milan in the San Siro last season

AFP/Getty

They were beaten 1-0 in November 2024, before getting revenge in January this year with a 3-1 win in Milan.

That UEFA rule means that Arsenal cannot travel to the San Siro for a third consecutive season and so if the Gunners are to face Inter, it must be at home.

Arsenal's options for their match away at a Pot 1 club are therefore PSG, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Barcelona or Atletico Madrid.