The first games of the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League proper (league phase) are scheduled for mid‑September 2025, with the opening matchday kicking off on 16 September 2025.

Quick scoop

  • The 2025–26 Champions League season officially starts with the first qualifying round on 8–9 July 2025.
  • The first “main” Champions League games most fans think of (league phase, replacing the old group stage) begin on 16–18 September 2025.
  • Matches in the league phase are then played across eight matchdays running from September 2025 through late January 2026.

So if you’re asking “when is the first Champions League game” in the sense of when this season gets underway at all, that’s early July 2025 with qualifying. If you mean the first big nights with all the top clubs involved, circle 16 September 2025 on your calendar.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.