The 2026-27 Champions League is well underway, with all 36 teams two matches into their league-phase campaigns, and the goals have been flowing across Europe. Matchday two alone saw the ball find the net a record-breaking 78 times across 18 matches.
Paris Saint-Germain are the defending champions after they won a second successive European Cup in May, beating Arsenal on penalties in the final in Budapest. Luis Enrique’s side have looked a class apart over the past 18 months or so, but they are likely to face stiff competition as they chase a third straight title.
So who is best placed to challenge PSG for European supremacy at this point? These Power Rankings will track the contenders throughout the competition and weed out the pretenders.
On the Outside Looking In
This season’s rankings look a little different. Rather than ranking all 36 teams, we are mirroring the competition’s league phase by ranking the top 24 contenders, leaving the other 12 on the outside looking in.
That does not mean none of these 12 teams will progress. There is always a shock name or two in the knockout rounds. However, this group is currently the least likely to advance past the opening round.
Several of these teams have already enjoyed success. Azerbaijani newcomers Sabah beat Slavia Prague in their first home match at this level, and both Norwegian clubs have made their mark. Viking earned a 3-3 draw with Bayern Munich, and Bodo/Glimt beat Borussia Dortmund 24 hours later. Still, all of them face a long road to even reach the play-off round.
Other minnows, such as LASK and Slovan Bratislava, look a little out of their depth. There is also concern that neither Turkish club will make it through, with Galatasaray and Fenerbahce having collected just a single point between them so far.
The doomed dozen: AEK Athens, Bodo/Glimt, Fenerbahce (down), Feyenoord, Galatasaray (down), LASK, Lens, Lille (down), Sabah, Slavia Prague, Slovan Bratislava, and Viking.
The Power Rankings
24. Napoli (down)
Napoli are already in danger of missing the knockouts for a second successive season. Given Antonio Conte’s poor record in continental competition, it should not have surprised anyone when they crashed out of the league phase last season, but many were still shocked that the then-Serie A champions failed to finish in the top 24. Conte has since moved on, and Massimiliano Allegri has taken over following his own departure from AC Milan.
Things have not started well for Allegri. He has won only three of his six Serie A games in charge, and Napoli are still searching for their first Champions League point after losses to Arsenal and Villarreal. The defeat to Villarreal will concern him most. Napoli still have Sabah and Viking to play at the end of the league phase, but they first need to get within touching distance of qualification for those games to matter.
23. Villarreal (up)
Villarreal look far better equipped to make some noise this season. They were one of the biggest disappointments of last year’s competition, mustering just one point from eight games to finish second-bottom of the 36-team table. They are already performing much better.
Villarreal lost to Borussia Dortmund on matchday one, but they were unlucky not to leave Germany with a draw. They followed that with a victory over Napoli, featuring superb finishing from Inigo Perez‘s side. With Slavia Prague and Sabah still to come before Christmas, Villarreal should be well in the qualification hunt heading into the New Year.
22. Porto (down)
Porto arrived with high hopes after Francesco Farioli’s side won Liga Portugal last season. The Italian coach made them one of the toughest teams to beat in Europe after taking over in the summer of 2025, but they have work to do if they want to make a mark this time.
A defeat to Manchester City on matchday one was expected. Farioli will be more frustrated by how his side threw away a second-half lead against Real Betis, eventually losing 3-2 in Spain. Their home games against PSV and Napoli now feel like must-wins.
21. PSV (down)
PSV would have hoped for more than a single point from their opening two matches. They produced thrashings of Napoli and Liverpool during last season’s league phase but still fell short of the knockouts. Now there is a fear the Dutch champions could repeat that story.
A home draw with Shakhtar Donetsk was followed by a narrow defeat at RB Leipzig, where Ivan Perisic missed a penalty that proved costly for Peter Bosz‘s side. PSV have one of the easier sets of league-phase fixtures on paper, but they need to take advantage of that draw sooner rather than later.
20. RB Leipzig (down)
RB Leipzig are back at the top table after a third-place finish in the Bundesliga, having missed European football altogether last season. Their return got off to an embarrassing start, however, as newcomers Como thrashed them in their first continental match.
Manager Martin Demichelis got his side back on track with a narrow win over PSV, thanks to a second-half strike from Brajan Gruda. With Real Madrid and Manchester City next, that result was badly needed to keep morale high at the Red Bull Arena.
19. Shakhtar Donetsk (up)
Shakhtar Donetsk were not expected to do much on their return to the Champions League. The Ukrainian side continue their nomadic existence amid Russia’s invasion of their homeland, and they have made Stamford Bridge their home for European games this season. Under Arda Turan, they christened the new base with a win over AEK Athens.
That victory followed a creditable draw at PSV. With Slovan Bratislava and Fenerbahce still on the schedule, four points already gives Shakhtar an excellent base from which to plot a route into the knockouts.
18. Club Brugge (up)
Club Brugge have reached the knockouts in each of the first two years of the new format, and they are confident of making it three from three. They bounced back from an opening-night loss to Aston Villa by winning a thriller at Inter’s San Siro.
Nicolo Tresoldi announced himself on the European stage with a hat-trick, while winger Carlos Forbs caused the Inter backline all sorts of problems with his pace and trickery. With a relatively kind set of fixtures to come, the Belgian side should be confident of a top-24 finish.
17. Stuttgart (up)
Sebastian Hoeness continues to work wonders at Stuttgart, having taken them from the Bundesliga relegation play-off to the Champions League twice in three seasons. Deniz Undav has emerged as the club’s talisman up front, while Angelo Stiller and Jamie Leweling are attracting interest from Europe’s biggest clubs.
According to Opta, Stuttgart have been handed the easiest set of fixtures of any of the 36 qualified teams, and they have taken full advantage by beating both Viking and Slovan Bratislava. Atletico Madrid and Inter will offer sterner tests before the end of November, but a place in the knockouts is already within reach.
16. Real Betis (up)
Real Betis are back in the Champions League for the first time in over 20 years, and they finished fifth in La Liga last season under Manuel Pellegrini. Isco scored the winning goal as they came from behind to beat Porto on matchday two.
Betis have recorded back-to-back 3-2 wins over Lille and Porto, putting themselves well in the mix for a knockout place and potentially a bye to the last 16. They must maintain that momentum, because they will not want to enter their final two matches, against Arsenal and Bayern Munich, still needing points.
15. Como (down)
Como are Champions League debutants who were not even playing top-flight football three years ago, but they are not here just to make up the numbers. The Serie A upstarts have a knack for beating Italy’s biggest clubs, and Cesc Fabregas‘s side now wants to take down Europe’s best.
They started in style by thrashing RB Leipzig on matchday one, but a defeat at Feyenoord offered a brutal reality check. Manchester United are next, and a win over the Red Devils would put Como in a strong position, given they still have Lens and AEK Athens to come before November is out.
14. Sporting CP (up)
Sporting CP are becoming part of the Champions League furniture. They reached the quarter-finals last season after finishing in the top eight of the league phase, then produced an epic comeback to beat Bodo/Glimt in the last 16.
Rui Borges, who masterminded that run, remains in charge. Sporting are among the teams to have won both of their opening two games, following victories over Galatasaray and Lens. With LASK and Shakhtar Donetsk next, they could secure a top-eight finish well before they face Barcelona and Manchester City in January.
13. Roma (down)
Roma are back in the Champions League for the first time since the 2018-19 season. Gian Piero Gasperini has restored the club to being one of the major forces in Italian football, and the capital club have become very difficult to beat under the former Atalanta boss.
On matchday two, Roma led Real Madrid 3-1 entering the final 10 minutes at the Stadio Olimpico. However, some bizarre substitutions led to three late goals, and they left with just one point from their first two games after a draw at Fenerbahce. A home game against Slovan Bratislava offers the perfect chance to bounce back.
12. Borussia Dortmund (down)
Borussia Dortmund built a reputation as European football’s ultimate finishing school, producing the likes of Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham, and Achraf Hakimi. Elite graduates have dried up in recent years, so the Bundesliga giants turned to youth over the summer under Niko Kovac, who now has a squad with almost unlimited potential.
That potential has helped them start the Bundesliga season strongly, but their Champions League campaign is already on the rocks after a defeat to Bodo/Glimt in the Arctic Circle. They do have a win over Villarreal, and a matchday-three meeting with Sabah offers an ideal chance to return to winning ways.
11. Manchester United (down)
Michael Carrick guided Manchester United back into the Champions League during his impressive interim spell last season. His start as permanent boss has not gone to plan, however, with the Red Devils winning just two of their opening nine games in all competitions.
One of those wins came in Europe, where they routed newcomers Sabah at Old Trafford. The subsequent defeat at Atletico Madrid exposed a lack of cutting edge and top-level experience. Two tricky games against Como and Roma are next, and it remains to be seen whether Carrick will still be in charge by the time United face the Italian side.
10. Inter (down)
Inter were perhaps the biggest underperformers in last season’s competition. The beaten 2025 finalists were knocked out in the play-off round after losing to Bodo/Glimt both home and away. Cristian Chivu settled the club down and secured a domestic double in his first year, but European results have not improved yet.
Opta ranked Inter as having the second-easiest set of fixtures among the 36 league-phase sides. Even so, they lost to Real Madrid on matchday one and then fell 4-3 at home to Club Brugge. They have time to turn things around, but any suggestion of another deep run already looks questionable at best.
9. Aston Villa (up)
Aston Villa are showing their European credentials again under Unai Emery. Six starters from their triumphant Europa League final side left over the summer, so Emery is overseeing a season of transition with a team that is mostly made up of new signings. Several of those arrivals have carried injuries, but momentum now seems to be building at Villa Park.
In Europe, Villa followed an away win at Club Brugge with a 6-0 thrashing of Fenerbahce. They will be confident of making it three wins from three when they host Viking, before traveling to Camp Nou to face Barcelona in late November.
8. Atletico Madrid (down)
Atletico Madrid battled their way to the Champions League semi-finals last season, where they were edged out by Arsenal. Diego Simeone will believe his side can make another deep run, even though they lost at Anfield on matchday one.
Atleti bounced back impressively by beating Manchester United in their second fixture. A clash with Bayern Munich looms in early November, but their other games look winnable, so a place among the automatic qualifiers for the last 16 should be within reach by January.
7. Liverpool (up)
Liverpool went a round further than in 2024-25, but their performance levels in the Champions League went backward last season before PSG knocked them out for the second straight campaign. Andoni Iraola replaced Arne Slot and is hoping to return exciting, attacking football to Anfield, though improvements have been minor so far.
The Reds are sitting on two wins from two. They came from behind to beat Atletico Madrid at Anfield, then scored six in Austria to beat LASK. Bradley Barcola marked his Liverpool career with a hat-trick in that win. With one of the kinder sets of fixtures, Iraola’s side should be confident of a top-eight finish.
6. Manchester City (no change)
There may be no team more desperate to win the Champions League this season than Manchester City. A heavy sanction for financial rule-breaking is likely to come from the Premier League, so Enzo Maresca‘s side see winning the continent’s biggest competition as their most realistic route to staying among Europe’s elite.
Erling Haaland scored a second-half brace, but it was not enough as City fell to PSG. The defeat was a reminder of the level this new-look City must reach if they are to make a deep run. Their second-half performance offers hope, and they face Barcelona in early December.
5. Real Madrid (no change)
Real Madrid have fallen well short of expectations in the Champions League over the past two seasons, so they turned to Jose Mourinho to bring silverware back to the Bernabeu. The pressure is already on the Portuguese coach after some indifferent displays early in the campaign.
That pressure nearly boiled over when Madrid trailed Roma 3-1, but they scored three times in the final 10 minutes to win. Antonio Rudiger completed the epic comeback. Madrid have two wins from two, following their earlier victory over Inter, but major improvements are needed if Mourinho’s side are to reach at least the semi-finals.
4. Bayern Munich (down)
Bayern Munich emerged as many fans’ favorites last season before falling to PSG in one of the great semi-finals in competition history. Led by the attacking trio of Harry Kane, Michael Olise, and Luis Diaz, they had swept all before them, including Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.
Things have not clicked in the same way this time. Bayern came from 2-0 down to lead Viking in the second half, but Olise’s red card left them a man down, and they conceded a last-minute equalizer. Olise will also miss the matchday-three meeting with Arsenal, a measuring-stick game for both teams.
3. Arsenal (up)
Arsenal were beaten finalists in May, and their determination to finally win a first European Cup is likely to reach fever pitch. They are expected to run away with the Premier League title once Manchester City’s sanctions are confirmed. Mikel Arteta has a defense and midfield capable of going all the way, but questions remain over the attack after the club failed to land a big-name forward over the summer.
Arsenal are two from two, despite not being at their best against either Napoli or Lille. Next is a trip to Bayern Munich, where they will be keen to lay down a significant marker.
2. Barcelona (no change)
It has been 11 years since Barcelona last won the Champions League, but many believe that if any team can dethrone PSG this season, it is Hansi Flick‘s side. The Blaugrana have dominated La Liga under the German coach in recent seasons, but they have fallen short in Europe, partly because of their high defensive line and the open nature of their midfield.
The signing of Rodri is seen as a potential game-changer, since few players are better at snuffing out counter-attacks. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha have started the season in flying form, with Yamal providing two sensational assists in the matchday-two win over Galatasaray. With PSG next, Barcelona face the ultimate test.
1. Paris Saint-Germain (no change)
Winners of the Champions League in each of the past two seasons, PSG are going for a three-peat in 2026-27. They would become the first team not named Real Madrid to lift the European Cup three years running. The early signs are encouraging, as they followed a thrashing of Slovan Bratislava with a statement win at Manchester City.
Luis Enrique’s side were breathtaking, racing to a 3-0 lead in the first half. City posed plenty of problems after the break, but PSG held on for a 4-2 win. They now face Barcelona, which could prove to be a preview of the eventual final.