Power Ranking All 32 Teams In the 2023-24 Champions League Group Stage

The 2023-24 UEFA Champions League will be the last iteration of the competition to feature the group-stage format.

With that in mind, perhaps the power-ranking process will get a little bit easier in future, with teams set to be ordered in a single league table despite playing only eight of the 36 clubs that will feature—up from the 32 in this year's talent pool.

But for now, it's still a question of pitting them all against each other based on factors such as form, potential, star players, upcoming opponents and managerial acumen.

That famous Champions League anthem will be played in stadiums across Europe for the first time this season on September 19, with further games on September 20 completing Matchday 1.

So, as it stands, which team is most likely to see its name engraved on the trophy at Wembley Stadium in London on June 1, 2024, and which teams may be staring down the possibility of group-stage elimination?

32. RC Lens

A disastrous start to the season has seen last year's Ligue 1 runners-up RC Lens claim just a point from their first five games.

Losing top-scorer Loïs Openda and midfield dynamo Seko Fofana to RB Leipzig and Al-Nassr, respectively, has been seriously damaging.

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31. Royal Antwerp

It was always going to be tough for the 2022-23 Belgian Pro League champions at this level, and three wins from six in the league so far this season doesn't exactly breed confidence for success in a group that features Barcelona, Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk.

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30. Union Berlin

Union Berlin will just be happy to be at this stage, having been in the German second tier just five seasons ago and now preparing for their first-ever UEFA Champions League campaign.

With Real Madrid and Napoli in their pool, the qualifying spots for the knockout rounds seem locked up already.

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29. SC Braga

See above for the tricky group stage. Coming off a surprising 3-1 away defeat to Farense in the Primeira Liga isn't exactly the preparation SC Braga would have hoped for ahead of their first Champions League appearance since the 2012-13 campaign.

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28. BSC Young Boys

It's been a rocky start to BSC Young Boys' Swiss Super League title defense, alternating between wins (three) and draws (two) in their first five games.

The loss of Fabian Rieder stings, and meetings with Manchester City and RB Leipzig in Group G could result in some heavy losses.

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27. Real Sociedad

With just one win, three draws and a loss in their first five La Liga games this season, Real Sociedad aren't quite hitting the levels they reached when they marched to fourth last year.

The retirement of David Silva has led to an absence of experience and craft for a relatively young squad, and group-stage qualification will be beyond them.

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26. Sevilla

At least Real Sociedad haven't started the season like Sevilla, who have just three points from four outings thus far.

But you can never quite rule out the Rojiblancos on the European stage, having won the Europa League five times in the last decade.

Still, the Champions League isn't as comfortable for them.

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25. Crvena zvezda

Champions of the Serbian SuperLiga Crvena zvezda have lost two of their last three league matches to leave them trailing TSC Bačka Topola in second.

A meeting with reigning Champions League winners Manchester City to begin their first European Cup campaign since 2007-08 won't change their fortunes.

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24. Lazio

In terms of disastrous starts, Lazio can relate. Despite beating the reigning Serie A champions Napoli, they've otherwise lost to Lecce, Genoa and Juventus to leave them in 15th. Facing Atletico Madrid to open this year's European slate won't provide much respite.

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23. Newcastle United

Newcastle United's stock has taken a bit of a hit entering their first Champions League since the 2003-04 season. Three losses in five isn't ideal, but a win against Brentford at the weekend at least provides a confidence boost.

With Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain in their group, though, their chances of progression look bleak.

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22. FC Copenhagen

FC Copenhagen have had a bright start to their Danish Superliga defense, notching six wins in eight to sit at the summit again.

Domestic form puts them above some of their counterparts here, but it will still be tricky for them to make a lot of noise in Europe.

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21. Celtic

Celtic are no strangers to a Champions League upset, having toppled the mighty Barcelona 2-1 in the 2012-13 campaign and sealed qualification at the expense of Benfica and Spartak Moscow.

A reasonably kind group featuring Lazio, Atletico Madrid and Feyenoord might have them dreaming of their first appearance in the knockouts since that same year—which ended in a 5-0 aggregate defeat to Juventus.

20. RB Salzburg

Six wins and a draw to open the domestic campaign is a great start for RB Salzburg, but after being crowned Austrian Bundesliga champions in 14 of the last 17 seasons, you'd expect that by now.

With only one appearance in the Champions League knockouts to their name, don't expect them to place higher than Internazionale and Benfica in Group D.

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19. Manchester United

This might be harsh on Manchester United—hello, comments section!—but everything that could go wrong seems to be going wrong at Old Trafford.

It hasn't been the easiest run of fixtures for the Red Devils, but three losses and two narrow wins isn't where they'd hope to be after a relative bounce-back year.

With former transfer target Harry Kane waiting for them in Munich on Wednesday, some salt could be added to those fresh wounds.

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18. Borussia Dortmund

Jude Bellingham is now a Real Madrid player, and with his exit, Borussia Dortmund's star power has all but disintegrated.

After a poor start to the season, that should continue in Europe with Paris Saint-Germain next up on the docket.

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17. Feyenoord

Last year's Eredivisie champions have hit a little bump to begin the season, losing ground to challengers PSV early with two draws and three wins in five games.

It feels like a reasonably matched group stage for them in Europe, so it will be intriguing to see who breaks free into the knockouts.

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16. Atletico Madrid

In that aforementioned difficult-to-split group, Atletico Madrid are never an easy team to write off completely, having reached the knockout rounds in four of the last five seasons.

A middling record in La Liga to start the season isn't too concerning despite the hot start both Real Madrid and Barcelona have had, and you know they'll show up under the floodlights in midweek games.

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15. PSV

A close second to Feyenoord last season and top of the Eredivisie as it stands, PSV are the Dutch team to watch in the Champions League this time around.

With both Sevilla and Lens having horrific starts to the campaign, they surely have the round of 16 in their sights.

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14. Shakhtar Donetsk

Despite continuing turmoil in their home country, Shakhtar Donetsk are flying the flag for Ukraine in the Champions League this season.

Entering the competition at the top of their domestic league, few will want to face them, and a path to the last 16 does look possible.

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13. Galatasaray

Star power and good form have Galatasaray in spitting distance of the top 10, with the summer signings of Mauro Icardi, Kerem Demirbay, Angeliño, Wilfried Zaha, Hakim Ziyech, Tanguy Ndombélé and Tetê making for an interesting proposition if they can all jell.

With FC Copenhagen and Manchester United in their group, they may smell a spot in the knockouts alongside Bayern Munich.

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12. Porto

It's tough to separate the Primeira Liga representatives, with both Porto and Benfica having solid starts to their respective domestic campaigns and landing in similarly matched Champions League groups.

But Porto lag slightly behind their league rivals when it comes to recent European history, so they land just behind their foes from the capital.

Still, four wins from five to start the season has them bang in form, and a game against Shakhtar at a neutral ground isn't the worst Champions League opener.

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11. Benfica

Two Champions League quarterfinals in the last two years just puts Benfica ahead of Porto in these rankings.

A loss to Boavista in a wild game at the start of the Primeira Liga campaign was followed up by four straight wins with a combined score of 11-3, and a home meeting with RB Salzburg has them set up to continue that rich vein of form.

10. Arsenal

Arsenal return to the Champions League for the first time since 2016-17 and bag themselves a credible top-10 place in our power rankings.

It could be higher, but since it's Mikel Arteta's managerial debut in the competition and many of his players' first appearances, expectations should be tempered just a touch.

But a weak pool, good league form and a talented squad could see them shoot up the list in a hurry.

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9. RB Leipzig

A loss to fast-starting Bayer Leverkusen aside, it's been a good opening to the Bundesliga season for RB Leipzig, who sit one point off top with nine points and have scored 11 goals in their last three matches.

Just looking at Group H, it appears they'll ease through to the round of 16 in second place.

Xavi Simons has three goals and four assists already this season, and the PSG loanee will be one to watch.

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8. Milan

A 5-1 shellacking in the Derby della Madonnina at the weekend will have Milan desperate for a morale-boosting win, and Newcastle might be the perfect opponents to earn that against.

Despite the chastening defeat, the Rossoneri are still third in Serie A after a hat trick of victories to start the season, and the Magpies haven't exactly hit the ground running to start the year.

Expect them to get back on track in midweek and edge out Dortmund as the group stages come to a conclusion.

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7. Napoli

If simply judged on last season, Napoli would probably enter this ranking in the top five. But the celebrations of the previous campaign seem a long time ago now.

With Luciano Spalletti exiting the dugout to be replaced by Rudi Garcia, the absence of their title-winning manager has left the Partenopei looking a little flat.

Still, with Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia causing defenders nightmares, Napoli could bounce back in a hurry if Garcia can right the ship. Qualification should be a given in Group C, but toppling Real Madrid might be a bridge too far.

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6. Paris Saint-Germain

It's been a massively underwhelming start to the Ligue 1 season for Paris Saint-Germain, who have only two wins from their first five and enter midweek off a 3-2 loss to Nice.

The respective exits of Lionel Messi and Neymar hurt, while Marco Verratti's departure will be a bigger loss than they may have anticipated, but there is still bags of talent in a team that still has one of the best players in the world.

Kylian Mbappé can't do it all on his own, though. Thankfully, a place in the top two should be reasonably easy to achieve in Group F, allowing them time to tune up properly for the knockout phase.

Opening the top five is Internazionale, Serie A leaders after four games and the distributors of that Derby della Madonnina thrashing.

The Nerazzurri have moved on emphatically from the summer drama regarding the proposed signing of Romelu Lukaku and are perfect through their opening matches, scoring 13 and conceding one in the process.

Marcus Thuram is leading the line with aplomb, notching two and assisting three in his first four games, while the losses of André Onana and Milan Skriniar don't seem to have impacted the back line at all.

Look for Inter to top Group D ahead of Benfica, leaving them with a potentially easier path to a quarterfinal berth.

Harry Kane is in town, and Bayern Munich are already reaping the rewards. The England talisman has four goals in first four Bundesliga appearances, placing Die Roten second in the league behind Bayer Leverkusen on goal difference alone.

Kane's return of just one goal in eight European appearances last season for Tottenham Hotspur may be of some concern, as Bayern will be relying on his goals as the team's only true focal point.

But with service from Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry and Jamal Musiala, Kane will have all the tools needed to score in bunches and help Bayern qualify top of Group A with ease.

Barcelona might feel slightly hard done by to be in this spot, but you can't argue with the European history of the team one place ahead of them.

A strange draw with Getafe to open the La Liga campaign aside, Barcelona have picked up where they left off last year, with four consecutive wins giving the reigning champions a healthy platform to retain the title.

After falling in the group stage in the last two seasons, they'll want to make a point. Luckily for them, their pool shouldn't cause them any problems, and progression as group leaders should be in hand.

Really, for Xavi's players, it's about maintaining consistency and cutting out sloppy errors. Do that, and they should reach their first knockout round since the 2020-21 season.

Fourteen European Cup titles. You just can't argue with that.

Despite losing Karim Benzema to Al-Ittihad in the summer, Real Madrid have a 100 percent winning record to start the season and have signed a player who could probably win games all on his own.

Jude Bellingham has been sensational so far in his Los Blancos career, scoring five and assisting one in five La Liga matches from an attacking-midfield berth.

The talent around him remains, too, with Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Federico Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga bringing youthful vigor to a team that still has the wisdom of serial winners Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić.

Qualification should be a breeze, then it's just a case of how far they can go.

With the albatross being well and truly lifted from the neck of Manchester City after claiming the club's first-ever Champions League title, it seems there is absolutely nothing stopping them from adding a second.

A treble-winning campaign was, quite frankly, everything this team deserved last season, with the cerebral management of Pep Guardiola complemented by the football genius of Kevin De Bruyne, the return to form of Jack Grealish, the almost baffling clutch moments from Rodri and the relentless goalscoring onslaught of Erling Haaland.

So far this season, it seems they haven't missed a beat, sitting top of the Premier League with five wins in five, scoring 14 and conceding just three.

Haaland has picked up right where he left off last year, and smart additions in the form of Josko Gvardiol, Jérémy Doku, Matheus Nunes and Mateo Kovačić have made an already immense unit stronger.

It's City's to lose, really, and a comfortable group stage will leave them fresh for the knockout rounds.

That's a scary thought for any would-be contender.