The Arsenal are back in the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time since 2013/14 and it means they are likely to be unseeded in the Round of 32 draw, potentially setting up a tough tie against a top team.

BOREHAMWOOD, ENGLAND - MAY 11: Sari Van Veenendaal, Danielle Van de Donk, Dominique Bloodworth and Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal celebrate with the trophy after the WSL match between Arsenal Women and Manchester City at Meadow Park on May 11, 2019 in Borehamwood, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
BOREHAMWOOD, ENGLAND – MAY 11: Sari Van Veenendaal, Danielle Van de Donk, Dominique Bloodworth and Vivianne Miedema of Arsenal celebrate with the trophy after the WSL match between Arsenal Women and Manchester City at Meadow Park on May 11, 2019 in Borehamwood, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

The Arsenal will enter the tournament at the Round of 32 stage and it is a straight knockout to the final. There will be 16 seeded teams and 16 unseeded teams in the hat.

The seeds are decided according to the UEFA 5 year club coefficient.

That coefficient is calculated by adding the club’s points accumulated in the last five years in the competition to 33% of the Nations coefficient over the last five years as well.

This means Arsenal have no points from the last five seasons and therefore can only count on the 33% points of the English League.

Latest Arsenal injury updates and news

The club needs to be in the top 16 teams ranked out of the 32 to avoid being drawn against sides like Olympique Lyonnais, Paris Saint-Germain, Wolfsburg, FC Bayern, Athletico Madrid or FC Barcelona. Arsenal cannot draw Manchester City in the first round.

As of today, there are 15 teams with a better coefficient than Arsenal that are through to the Round of 32.

1 Lyon (FRA, holders) 129.865
2 Wolfsburg (GER) 112.575
3 Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) 99.865
4 Barcelona (ESP) 91.160
5 Bayern München (GER) 67.575
6 Slavia Praha (CZE) 59.870
7 Manchester City (ENG) 59.655
8 Brøndby (DEN) 50.045
9 Fortuna Hjørring (DEN) 47.045
10 FC Zürich (SUI) 44.230
11 Glasgow City (SCO) 34.085
12 Atlético Madrid (ESP) 33.160
13 Sparta Praha (CZE) 32.870
14 Fiorentina (ITA) 26.890
15 St. Pölten (AUT) 20.270
16 Arsenal (ENG) 17.655

There are also eight teams that could make it from the qualifying round therefore pushing Arsenal through to the unseeded side of the draw.

Qualifying round

Seeding position 1
1 LSK Kvinner (NOR) 42.205
2 BIIK-Kazygurt (KAZ) 34.580
3 Gintra Universitetas (LTU) coefficient 27.930 – hosts
4 FC Twente (NED) 26.900 – hosts
5 Apollon LFC (CYP) 20.270
6 ŽFK Spartak (SRB) 17.955

Should any of those six teams qualify for the Round of 32, Arsenal would end up in the unseeded teams.

Therefore, a draw against Lyon, Wolfsburg, PSG, or Barcelona and a first-round exit could be a possibility.

With a 27% chance of drawing a top-four seed, we will need some luck when the draw is made on 16 August.

Tournament schedule:

Qualifying round: 7, 10 & 13 August 2019
Round of 32 draw: 16 August 2019, Nyon
Round of 32: 11/12 & 25/26 September 2019
Round of 16 draw: 30 September 2019, Nyon
Round of 16: 16/17 & 30/31 October 2019
Quarter-final & semi-final draw: 8 November 2019, Nyon
Quarter-finals: 24/25 March & 1/2 April 2020
Semi-finals: 25/26 April & 2/3 May 2020
Final (Viola Park, Vienna): 24 May 2020

Latest Arsenal injury updates and news