Haaland, Yamal and Šeško set to start in the same league

Europe's leading football clubs are ready for the first act of a Champions League season that will bring together Erling Haaland, Lamine Yamal and Benjamin Šeško in the same competition. The campaign opens in Athens at 7:45 p.m. local time, marking the start of the 35th UEFA Champions League season and the 72nd edition of Europe's top club tournament.

At the same time, at 6:45 p.m. Slovenian time, Slovenian international Tian Koren is set to compete for a place in the tournament in Belgium. Later in the evening, the global football audience will focus on the derby between Real Madrid and Inter, scheduled for 9 p.m.

The competition remains open to European clubs that have the quality and the route to pursue their ambitions. The squads of all 36 clubs illustrate the financial range. Real Madrid sits at the top with a squad valued at 1.5 billion euros, while Azerbaijan's Sabah is at the other end, with its players collectively valued at 15 million euros, about one percent of Real's total.

Haaland of Manchester City and Barcelona's Yamal are the most valuable players, each assessed at 220 million euros. Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé follows at 200 million euros. Slovenian supporters will also have six players to follow: Jan Oblak at Atlético Madrid, Benjamin Šeško at Manchester United, Danijel Šturm at Slavia Prague, Tian Koren at Club Brugge, and Kenan Bajrić and Andraž Šporar at Slovan Bratislava.

At least one of them could still be competing for a place in the final when the league phase concludes on January 27. The final will take place on June 5, 2027, at Atlético Madrid's stadium. The tournament attracts roughly 3.5 billion people in different ways over the course of a season.