Liverpool will secure a reprieve from hosting Real Madrid at Anfield in the group stage of the 2026/27 Champions League. This development is credited to a new clause in UEFA's regulations, designed to break the pattern of repeated encounters between the same teams at identical venues for three consecutive years.
The essence of UEFA's new rule
According to clause 16.03 of the official Champions League regulations, if two teams met in the group stage during the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons at the same venue, they cannot face each other at that venue again in the 2026/27 tournament:
The UEFA Club Competitions Committee has determined an additional condition for the draw in the 2026/27 season: any individual match between two teams cannot be repeated in the same tournament at the same venue for three consecutive seasons.
History of encounters and the draw's status
In the previous two iterations of the revamped Champions League, the draw consistently pitted the Madrid side against Liverpool at Anfield:
- In the 2024/25 season, Liverpool claimed victory with a 2-0 scoreline, thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo.
- During the 2025/26 campaign, the Merseysiders triumphed again, winning 1-0, with Mac Allister heading home from a Dominic Szoboszlai assist.
This rule specifically applies to group stage matches, meaning the prospect of a meeting at Anfield is off the table. However, the draw may still lead to encounters at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid. This restriction does not apply to the knockout stages.
