Ranking the best moments from the Champions League league phase

The Champions League opening round culminates this week, as the league phase finishes with all 18 games taking place on one exciting evening. 

Matchday 8 will decide which teams will make the top eight and automatically qualify for the round of 16, with only Arsenal and Bayern Munich having booked their place so far. 

The two European giants have dominated a league phase, which has seen plenty of twists and turns in the second season of this Champions League format. 

Ahead of the league's finale, DAZN News ranks the most memorable moments from the 2025-26 Champions League, league phase. 

8 Bagged a win 

One of the aims for the current Champions League was to allow more opportunities for the 'lesser' nations during the opening phase, and this year it's seen Qarabag take full advantage. 

They set the tone for what's been a successful league stage so far for the team from Azerbaijan on Matchday 1, when they stunned former European champions Benfica. 

The Portuguese side looked to be on their way to a comfortable 2-0 home victory just 15 minutes into the game, but Qarabag had other ideas. 

Gurban Gurbanov's side turned the game on its head in the second half, winning 3-2 to record one of their most famous victories and use it as a springboard for a campaign that could see them make the knockouts. 

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7 Goals galore

Juventus and Borussia Dortmund clashed on Matchday 1 in a repeat of the classic 1997 final, in which the Germans famously edged. 

The 2025-26 vintage, though, was even more dramatic as the two European giants fought out a dramatic 4-4 draw in Turin, in a roller-coaster of an encounter. 

Unbelievably the game was goalless at half time, before springing into life in the second period. On three occasions, Dortmund took the lead, only to be pegged back by the hosts. However, going into injury time, the Bundesliga side were 4-2 up and looking home and dry. 

What they didn't bargain for was two later goals from Dusan Vlhovic and then Lloyd Kelly to even up the tie in pulsating fashion. 

6  Marcus Magic 

Marcus Rashford's loan to Barcelona has freed up the England man and he seems to be enjoying his football again, and it was sparked by this performance in the Champions League at Newcastle. 

Rashford made a quick return to England to face the Magpies and was the difference maker as Barca opened up their Champions League campaign with a win on Tyneside. 

His two second-half goals, the second of which will be a contender for the competition's goal of the season, lit up St James' Park and gave the forward the platform to kick on and star for his new side in this season's Champions League. 

5 PSG power 

The reigning European champions haven't quite hit their all-conquering stride from last season, but they've shown on more than one occasion the full force that they have in their squad and how it will take some doing to dethrone them. 

By the time they met Spurs on Matchday 6, they had already put seven past Bayer Leverkusen, and they repeated their goalscoring exploits for the visit from Thomas Frank's men. 

Vitinha netted a hat-trick in an end-to-end affair that ended up in a 5-3 win for the Parisians and showed that Luis Enrique's side are still unplayale when they want to be. 

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4 Dutch delight 

Napoli came into this season's Champions League as champions of Italy and looking to finally make a mark on the competition.

That aim hasn't quite gone to plan, with the Italian's struggling to make the play-offs and their European woes were compounded in Eindhoven when they were embarrassed by PSV. 

The Dutch side put six goals past Antonio Conte's men, in what was one of their best-ever Champions League performances, and a nightmare for the men from Naples.

Not even Scott McTominay's brace could hide their blushes as PSV went home worthy winners in the 6-2 victory. 

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3 Gunning for glory 

Arsenal have been the team to beat so far in the Champions League, with seven wins out of seven in the league phase. 

Perhaps, however, their most impressive performance came in the top of the table clash with Bayern Munich on Matchday 5, as the Germans travelled to The Emirates with both sides still unbeaten.

On the night, it was the Gunners who bested Vincent Kompany's men, with a powerful performance that laid down a marker for their Champions League intentions this season. 

It wouldn't be too much of a surprise to see a repeat of the fixture later in the competition, when the stakes are much, much higher. 

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2 Four-midable Mbappe 

There's no question that Kylian Mbappe has been one of the Champions League's outstanding names so far, having reached double figures in the competition already. 

That tally was largely helped by the FOUR goals he netted in Real Madrid's 4-3 win over Olympiakos on Matchday 5, on a dramatic night in Greece. 

The Frenchman's treble was the second-fastest hat-trick in the European competition and it saw Mbappe overtake Thomas Müller in sixth place on the all-time leading Champions League goalscorers list. 
 

1 Too cool for City 

Manchester City have had an odd Champions League campaign so far, and it means they'll likely miss out on an automatic place, whatever happens on Wednesday. 

It all started so well after beating Napoli in their opener, but turned sour pretty quickly, culminating in one of the biggest shocks in the competition's history on Matchday 7, when they were soundly beaten by Bodo/Glimt. 

The Norwegian side is embarking on its first-ever Champions League adventure and the win over City is easily one of the club's biggest ever results. 

What made the win all the more satisfying was how good Glimt were on the night, too. More than worthy of the 3-1 win over the 2023 winners. 

Martin Ole Wold/Getty Images

Full Champions League fixture list for Matchday 8

Wednesday, 28 January 

• Ajax v Olympiakos
• Arsenal v Kairat Almaty
• Athletic Bilbao v Sporting CP
• Atlético Madrid v FK Bodø/Glimt
• Barcelona v FC Copenhagen
• Bayer Leverkusen v Villarreal
• Benfica v Real Madrid
• Borussia Dortmund v Inter Milan
• Club Brugge v Olympique Marseille
• Eintracht Frankfurt v Tottenham Hotspur
• Liverpool v FK Qarabağ
• Manchester City v Galatasaray
• Monaco v Juventus
• Napoli v Chelsea
• PSV Eindhoven v Bayern Munich
• Pafos v Slavia Prague
• Paris St Germain v Newcastle United
• Union Saint-Gilloise v Atalanta

How to watch the Champions League in the USA on DAZN 

Soccer fans in the US can watch the Champions League in Spanish language as part of their DAZN subscription package.

An annual upfront payment is $224.99 , while paying monthly for 12 months is $19.99  and also provides access to 185 fight nights a year across boxing, MMA, PFL, BKFC, Glory and much more.

CBS has coverage of every Champions League match in English language this season.  You can get more details and subscribe to CBS's Champions League coverage here.

Fans can watch extra Champions League games in Spanish on ViX. A selection of those matches are also available on UNIMÁS and TUDN.

• For a list of the selected Champions League fixtures to be broadcast live in the U.S. on DAZN in Spanish, click here

How to watch the Champions League in New Zealand on DAZN  

Every Champions League game during the 2025-26 season is streamed in high definition and comes as part of a DAZN subscription.

An annual subscription costs $14.99 per month for 12 months and also provides access to 185 fight nights a year across boxing, MMA, PFL, BKFC, Glory and much more.

How to watch the Champions League in Canada on DAZN

Watch every game of the Champions League this season in Canada with a DAZN subscription. 

There are three subscription options, each offering a different selection of sports. Access to every Champions League match is included in all three package offerings, ranging from $29.99 to $44.99 per month (for 12 months)