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Champions League Draw 2015: Date, Seeds, TV and Live Stream Info for Group Stage

Published by Bleacher Report on Thu, 27 Aug 2015


The draw for the 2015-16 Champions League group stage will take place on Thursday, August 27.Once again Europe's top 32 teams, including giants such as Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Chelsea, will return to do battle in UEFA's showpiece tournament.The clubs will be split into eight groups of four, drawn from four seeded pots.Pot 1 now comprises the holders and champions of UEFA's top seven associationsSpain, England, Germany, Italy, Portugal, France and Russia, while Barcelona's league and European double last season sees the Netherlands take the eighth place.Thanks to Sevilla's qualification via their Europa League win, Spain are the first nation to field five teams in the group stage.Here is all the viewing information you need to catch the all-important draw:Date:Thursday,August 27Time:4:45 p.m. BST/11:45 a.m. ETLive Stream:Official UEFA websiteTV Info:BT Sport Europe (UK)Barcelona Aiming to Defend TitleNo team has ever won back-to-back Champions League titles, so the onus will be on Barcelona this year to be first.Goal.com's Aditya Bajaj wrote about the difficulties teams face in defending a Champions League title, noting that on top of the tournament being exceptionally difficult to navigate due to the quality of the opposition, a lengthy campaign in Europe will see players make upwards of 50 appearances a season including domestic league and cup matches.That could be a particular problem this season for Barcelona, who have parted with or loaned out the likes of Pedro, Adama Traore and Alen Halilovic but due to their transfer ban will not be able to field any new faces until January.To make matters worse, Dani Alves and Sergio Busquets were both forced off early in the Blaugrana's La Liga opener against Athletic Bilbao. B/R's own Rik Sharma noted the difficulties caused by their ban:That said, though the draw has not yet been made, it seems inconceivable that Barca could fail to qualify for the knockout stage.With the fresh-legged Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal available for the knockout games, Luis Enrique's side will receive a timely mid-season boost that could see them make a strong push for another Champions League title.There's a long way to go just yet, though, and each team's chances will become much clearer following the draw.English Teams Looking to Step UpAfter fielding a team in the Champions League final in seven of the eight showpieces between 2005 and 2012, the Premier League is seriously struggling to compete in Europe, and last season was no different.Liverpool failed to escape a group including Basel and Ludogorets, Manchester City scraped through the group stage and were defeated by Barcelona, and Arsenal and Chelsea were dismissed far too easily by Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 due to poor performances at home.Former Manchester United defender and Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was disappointed with the performances of the English sides:Per his column in the Telegraph, he expanded:Watching Premier League games Im still enthused, still entertained, but at times I despair when I judge them alongside the Champions League matches I see midweek. Most elite European teams are better organized and physically betterwhich is a scary oneand are certainly better technically.We talk about intensity and aggression and toughness in English football. Stop saying English football is tough. Jordi Alba, the Barcelona left-back, is as aggressive as hell.Neville also added that English clubs' struggle to recruit "elite" players is a significant concern affecting their ability to compete in Europe.England's representatives have made some strides in that area this summerthe likes of Pedro, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Petr Cech and Nicolas Otamendi could arguably fall into that categorybut so far there have been few marquee names arriving in London or Manchester.The top talents of Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba, Neymar and Thomas Muller all appear to be staying at their respective clubs, and without their calibre, it's difficult to see how this season will be different for the Premier League sides.Key, of course, will be the draw, but with Chelsea the only top-seeded team following the regulation change, United, Arsenal and Manchester City could all struggle if they're unlucky with their groups.In the meantime, some more recruitment is needed.Read more World Football news on BleacherReport.com
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