Pots finalized for Champions League group stage draw

The four pots for Thursday's Champions League group stage draw were finalized Wednesday after Red Bull Salzburg, FC Sheriff Tiraspol, and Shakhtar Donetsk advanced from their qualifiers to secure the final three spots in the tournament.

Reigning champions Chelsea will be in Pot 1 as will 2021 runners-up Manchester City thanks to the latter's Premier League title. They will be joined by Europa League winners Villarreal, plus the champions of the five other top domestic leagues in Europe.

Thursday's draw begins at noon ET and will divide the 32 teams into eight groups of four, with the first matchday set for Sept. 14-15.

Here's how the pots break down:

Pot 1: Chelsea, Villarreal, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Lille, Sporting CP

Pot 2: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund

Pot 3: FC Porto, Ajax, Shakhtar Donetsk, RB Leipzig, Benfica, Atalanta, Zenit Saint-Petersburg, Red Bull Salsburg

Pot 4: Besiktas, Dynamo Kyiv, Club Brugge, Young Boys, AC Milan, Malmo, VfL Wolfsburg, FC Sheriff Tiraspol