Tottenham Hotspur will face a few familiar opponents in the group stages of this season’s Champions League.
They will make return trips to Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt and Norway’s Bodo/Glimt, who they beat in the quarter-finals and semi-finals of last season’s successful Europa League run.
Thomas Frank’s team will also travel to Paris for a UEFA Super Cup rematch against Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain.
The teams they will face — not in chronological order — are Borussia Dortmund (H), Paris Saint-Germain (A), Villarreal (H), Frankfurt (A), Slavia Prague (H), Bodo-Glimt (A), Copenhagen (H), Monaco (A).
Which game most excites you?
Tottenham have been to Monaco, Bodo/Glimt and Frankfurt (twice) in recent years, so the most exciting away trip is Paris Saint-Germain… the team they played in the Super Cup earlier this month.
But that was Spurs’ first-ever game against PSG, and this will be their first-ever away game at the Parc des Princes. They are the reigning European champions, playing a level of football last season not seen by anyone in years. It should be a memorable night for Tottenham fans who travel, and a chance to tick off a ground that, on a big European night, can create a special atmosphere
Which game worries you?
Spurs made the trip to Bodo/Glimt look easy when they went there in the Europa League semi-finals last season. Might the Norwegian champions be out for revenge when Spurs return there in the league phase? They could well be desperate to prove why they had such a fearsome home record before Spurs flew up to face them. And if they finally hit the levels they had shown in the past, it could be a much trickier return to the Arctic Circle for Tottenham.
What is Thomas Frank’s biggest issue to confront in the tournament?
Tottenham clearly struggled last season with balancing the twin demands of domestic and European competition. The squad was not deep enough to do both simultaneously, and Spurs suffered an injury crisis that derailed the whole season.
Of course, Ange Postecoglou still found a way to manage the squad through to glory in the Europa League final in Bilbao. But it came at the cost of Spurs having to de-prioritise the Premier League, leading to their 17th-place finish. It was a unique situation which will surely not be repeated this year.
So Frank will have to find a way to balance the Champions League with the Premier League, managing his players through two difficult fixtures every week.
Who could be a breakthrough talent for Spurs in the Champions League?
Pape Matar Sarr had a brief taste of Champions League football under Antonio Conte, but he has improved so much since then and has been one of the most impressive players in Frank’s brief Spurs tenure so far. He has started all three games in an advanced midfield position and made himself an absolute nuisance to opponents, making the most of his energy and intelligence in winning the ball back.
He has shown that he can flourish on the big occasions, crossing for Brennan Johnson’s winner in Bilbao. And he will play a big part in anything that Spurs do in Europe this season.
Which team do Tottenham most want to avoid in the latter stages?
No Tottenham fan would relish a two-legged tie against Arsenal, or for that matter, Chelsea.
Spurs’ record against those two in recent years is not much to boast about. But with so many English teams kept apart in this year’s league phase, if they all progress, then the chances of a London derby in the knockouts will obviously go up.
What would be considered a successful finish?
Tottenham have only had two Champions League campaigns since they lost the final to Liverpool in 2019 — and they have both been utterly forgettable.
In both campaigns, Spurs were eliminated at the last-16 stage without putting much of a fight either time: to RB Leipzig in 2020 under Jose Mourinho, and to AC Milan in 2023 at the end of Antonio Conte’s tenure.
There have barely been any positive memories from those campaigns either. A late 2-1 win in Marseille in November 2022 is probably the closest you can get. So, at a minimum, it would be nice if Spurs could feel like they have at least made a real impression on the competition this time. A few memorable nights in the league phase would be a start. Progression to the next stage is important. And getting to a first Champions League quarter-final since 2019 would surely be seen as a success.
Prediction time… how far will Tottenham get?
Their draw does not look especially intimidating, given what they could have got. And unless the schedule really gets on top of them, Spurs should have enough to make it through to the knockout stages. They might not quite have the experience and quality to get top eight, which means they may be at the mercy of a favourable draw in the ‘punishment round’ early in 2026.
But let’s be optimistic and say they will get through that. Maybe a third straight last-16 exit will be where they end up.
(Top photo: David Lidstrom/UEFA via Getty Images)