Mainz – September 10, 2026 -- German public broadcaster ZDF launches its 2026/2027 UEFA Champions League coverage with two consecutive highlight broadcasts, airing the men's competition for the third season under the 36-team league-phase format.
ZDF schedules back-to-back highlight shows for matchday one
"ZDFsportstudio UEFA Champions League" airs Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at 23:00 CET, covering opening matches involving VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Dortmund. A second edition follows Thursday, September 10, 2026, at 23:15 CET, featuring FC Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig. Host Katrin Müller-Hohenstein anchors both editions from the Mainz studio, joined by former professional player and U19 national coach Hanno Balitsch as analyst.
Broadcaster covers all 18 matchday-one fixtures across platforms
The two broadcasts include summaries of all nine remaining matches from the 18-fixture opening round, played September 8-10, 2026. Full match summaries with all goals are available same-day from 23:00 CET on ZDFheute.de, the ZDFheute app, and sportstudio.de.
League-phase format enters its third season with 36 clubs
Each of the 36 qualified clubs plays eight matches against eight different opponents, split evenly between four home and four away fixtures. Teams finishing in the top eight of the 36-team table advance directly to the round of 16, while clubs ranked 9th through 24th contest a two-legged play-off round for the remaining knockout-stage spots. Paris Saint-Germain has won the trophy in each of the two most recent seasons.
Season culminates with Madrid final on June 5, 2027
The knockout rounds proceed to a single final, scheduled for Saturday, June 5, 2027, in Madrid. ZDF's next Champions League highlight broadcast, covering the second league-phase matchday, is set for Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at 23:00 CET.