The draw for the league stage of the new-look UEFA Champions League took place on Thursday, throwing up a series of heavyweight fixtures including a trip for holders Real Madrid to Liverpool and a repeat of last season’s final between the Spanish giants and Borussia Dortmund. Every team will play eight games against eight different opponents in the new format of Europe’s elite club competition, with all 36 clubs now pooled together into one league rather than split into groups. 

Madrid, who have signed France superstar Kylian Mbappe since winning a record-extending 15th European Cup, will also notably play AC Milan at home and will go to Atalanta. Real beat last season’s Europa League winners Atalanta in the UEFA Super Cup in Warsaw earlier this month.