The 2025/26 UEFA Champions League promises to be an exciting competition thanks to its format and the presence of Europe’s best teams. Some of them, such as PSG and Arsenal FC, will visit ‘The Cathedral’. Don’t miss out on your ticket to enjoy the continent’s top competition and the red-&-white atmosphere of the big games at San Mamés!
Secure your seat for the Champions League in the pre-sale
To access the ticket pre-sale, apply for your Club Athletic Premium card, which has numerous advantages:
- Preferential access to tickets throughout the stadium.
- From 4 days before the general public and 24 hours before other supporters for Champions League, Cup, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Real Sociedad matches.
- Up to 2 tickets per supporter.
Join Club Athletic and benefit from the pre-sale for upcoming matches.
To access the rest of the tickets, go to the official Athletic Club sales channel.
- General admission
- Location: Choose your seat in one of the four stands: Main, East, North or South.
- Access: Admission to the stadium and bars in the chosen area.
- Member admission
- Availability: Only for members who have not activated their membership card for this match.
- VIP Area Ticket
- Location: Central ring of San Mamés.
- Services included:
- Seat in a privileged location
- Access 1h30 before and up to 1h after the match
- Catering service
- Screens showing the match live
- Match day VIP Member
- Exclusive for members who have activated their membership card for the match.
- Location: Central ring of San Mamés.
- Services included: Complete VIP experience at a special price.
What will the Champions League format be like?
The Champions League will maintain the format introduced in the 2024/25 season, which replaces the traditional group stage with a league stage featuring 36 teams. Each club will play eight matches against different opponents (four at home and four away), distributed across four pots according to their UEFA coefficient.
The top eight teams will advance directly to the round of 16, while teams ranked 9th to 24th will compete in a play-off round to advance to the next round.
From there, the competition follows a knockout format until the grand final. This system aims to increase competitiveness and provide more matches between elite teams from the outset.
Make a note of the key dates for the Champions League
The 2025/26 Champions League calendar began in July 2025 with the preliminary rounds and will run until the final in May 2026. These are the dates of the eight matchdays for the Lions:
- Matchday 1: Athletic Club v Arsenal FC (Tuesday 16th September at 6.45 p.m.).
- Matchday 2: Borussia Dortmund v Athletic Club (Wednesday 1st October at 9pm).
- Matchday 3: Athletic Club v Qarabag (Wednesday 22nd October at 6.45pm).
- Matchday 4: Newcastle v Athletic Club (Wednesday 5th November at 9pm).
- Matchday 5: Slavia Prague v Athletic Club (Tuesday 25th November at 9pm).
- Matchday 6: Athletic Club v Paris Saint Germain (Wednesday 10th December at 9pm).
- Matchday 7: Atalanta v Athletic Club (Wednesday 21st January at 9pm).
- Matchday 8: Athletic Club v Sporting Club de Portugal (Wednesday 28th January at 9pm).
The grand final in Budapest
The 2025/26 Champions League final will be played on 30th May 2026 at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary. This stadium, with a capacity of over 67,000 spectators, will host the Champions League final for the first time, having previously hosted the Europa League final in 2023.
Athletic Club returns to the Champions League after an absence of more than a decade, marking a milestone for the Basque club. This return is generating great excitement among fans, who are eager to see the red-&-white (zurigorri) team compete against the European giants at San Mamés once again.
These matches can be enjoyed in an unparalleled way with VIP experiences, which include exclusive access, premium amenities and the best view of the game, as well as catering service before, during and after the match.
Let’s get the ball rolling!
