The 2026-27 UEFA Champions League is on to the playoff round, the final stage of qualifying before the 36-team league phase begins in September.\nThe playoff round features seven two-legged ties, with the winners advancing to join 29 other clubs who qualified directly for the league phase. The matches will be played on Aug. 18-19 with the second legs scheduled for Aug. 25-26 across Europe.\nWhile the expanded format has taken some of the star power out of the playoff round in recent years, fans will be familiar with a handful of the participants including Scottish giant Celtic, Turkey's Fenerbahe and last year's darling Bod/Glimt from Norway.\nHere's what to know for the playoff round and Champions League at large:\nWhere to watch Champions League\nThe UEFA Champions League streams exclusively on Paramount+.\nWatch Champions League on Paramount+\nChampions League bracket: Playoff round\nWinners of two-legged ties advance to league phase\nLevski Sofia vs. AEK Athens Dinamo Zagreb vs. Viking FK Slovan Bratislava vs. Celje Sabah vs. Hapoel Be'er Sheva LASK vs. Celtic Fenerbahe vs. Lyon N.E.C. Nijmegen vs. Bod/Glimt \nWhat teams are in Champions League?\nTwenty-nine teams qualified directly for the UCL's primary league phase, which begins in September. These 29 will be joined by the seven playoff winners.\nArsenal AS Roma Aston Villa Atltico Madrid Bayern Munich Borussia Dortmund Club Brugge Como FC Barcelona FC Porto Feyenoord Galatasaray Inter Milan Liverpool LOSC Lille Manchester City Manchester United Napoli Paris Saint-Germain PSV Eindhoven RB Leipzig RC Lens Real Betis Real Madrid Shakhtar Donetsk Slavia Prague Sporting CP VfB Stuttgart Villarreal \nChampions League schedule 2026-2027\nPlayoff round: Aug. 18-19 / Aug. 25-26League phase: Sept. 8 - Jan. 27, 2027Each teams plays eight matchesKnockout playoffs: Feb. 16-17 / Feb. 23-24Round of 16: March 9-10 / March 16-17 Quarterfinals: April 6-7 / April 13-14 Semifinals: April 27-28 / May 4-5 Final: June 5, 2027 in Madrid\nWhen is the Champions League draw?\nThe draw for the league phase of the 2026-27 UEFA Champions League will be held on Aug. 27.\nThis article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When does UEFA Champions League start? Playoff round schedule and bracket