2026–2027 Champions League: What will become of Inter, Napoli, Roma, and Como? AI has no doubts

The 2026–2027 Champions League is just around the corner, and the 36-team format—now in its third year—is making the season more unpredictable than ever. Inter, Napoli, Roma, and Como represent Italy, each starting from very different positions, but the overall picture—including matchups, the schedule, and the caliber of opponents—already allows us to outline plausible scenarios. The group stage will begin on September 8 and conclude on January 27, with each club playing eight matches against opponents drawn from the four pots of the UEFA rankings.

According to artificial intelligence, Inter is the best-equipped of the Italian teams. The draw has paired the Nerazzurri with tough opponents like Real Madrid, Liverpool, and Borussia Dortmund, but also more manageable teams such as Stuttgart and Slovan Bratislava. The depth of the roster and recent European experience suggest a solid run: the AI projects Inter to finish consistently in the top 8, thereby qualifying directly for the round of 16.

Napoli faces a challenging path, with matchups against Arsenal, Porto, and Manchester City. The team has quality, but the competition is fierce: the AI places the Azzurri between 10th and 20th place, putting them squarely in the playoff zone. Much will depend on their ability to pick up points against the top-ranked opponents: if Napoli can hold their own, they may even aim for the Round of 16; otherwise, they risk slipping to the bottom of the playoff group.

Roma wasn’t particularly lucky in the draw: Fenerbahçe, Real Madrid, Manchester United, PSG, and Sporting are far from easy opponents, and it will be essential not to drop points against Slovan Bratislava, AEK Athens, and Lille. Gasperini’s team has structure and identity; while it hasn’t exactly shone with consistency in the recent past, it has started this season very strongly. The AI, however, ranks Roma between 12th and 22nd place—again, within the playoff zone.

Como is one of four teams making their debut in the Champions League group stage, along with LASK, Sabah, and Viking. Their schedule is extremely tough: Leipzig, Feyenoord, Manchester United, Lens, AEK Athens, Betis, PSG, and Barcelona. The AI projects Fabregas’s team to finish below 25th place—and thus in the elimination zone—but with a chance to pull off unexpected results thanks to the enthusiasm and drive of Sinigaglia. It won’t be easy, but Champions League history shows that rookies can surprise everyone.