Celtic 1 of 8 confirmed for Champions League group stages, £25m windfall, when is the draw, fixture dates

Celtic's 2-0 success at Hearts on Sunday confirmed their status as Scottish Premiership champions as they wrapped up a second title in a row under Ange Postecoglou.

Doing so ensured the side will enter the Champions League group stage for the second successive season. They will be guaranteed six games, some of which will likely be against the very best teams in Europe. Last campaign saw the team drawn in a group alongside Real Madrid, RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk. With that experience behind them, the club will be hoping to make more of a mark in next year’s tournament.

Who has qualified?

Alongside Celtic, seven other clubs have been confirmed as group stage entrants. Serie A champions Napoli, Premier League leaders Manchester City and title challengers Arsenal, German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, plus Barcelona and Serbian champions Red Star Belgrade.

With leagues across Europe coming to a conclusion in the next few weeks, more teams will be confirmed.

Which pit will Celtic be in?

Due to their 31.000 coefficient, the Scottish champions are likely to be in Pot 4. If qualification plays out in terms of the seeded team progressing that will be the case, while Rangers could find themselves in Pot 3. Yet they need to navigate two rounds of qualifiers as they did last season. For Celtic to move into Pot 3 they will be hoping for a lot of upset during the qualification rounds.

When is the draw for the group stage?

Celtic will return to the Champions League group stages. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

Celtic fans face a long wait to find out their group stage opponents. The qualifiers run from the end of June to the end of August. On August 31, the draw for the group stage will be made.

What dates are the fixtures?

Last season the six matches were condensed due to the World Cup in Qatar. This time they take place between September and December.

Match day 1 – September 19/20

Match day 2 – October 3/4

Match day 3 – October 24/25

Match day 4 – November 7/8

Match day 5 – November 28/29

Match day 6 – December 12/13

How much money can Celtic earn?

It was predicted the club earned £25.4million from participation in the Champions League this season. That would increase should they pick up more points and progress from the group.