Napoli host Arsenal in Champions League opener, live only on Prime Video

Napoli open their 2026/27 Champions League campaign against Arsenal on Wednesday 9 September at 21:00 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, in the first round of the League Phase.

The game will not be shown on any traditional television channel, free-to-air or otherwise. Amazon Prime Video holds exclusive live rights, accessible via the app on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets, PlayStation and Xbox consoles, Fire TV Stick, Chromecast and Apple TV. Pre-match coverage starts at 19:30, an hour and a half before kick-off.

Napoli arrive at this fixture straight off Saturday's collapse at San Siro, a 3-2 defeat to Inter after leading 2-0. Only a few hours will have passed before the club faces a heavy European debut on Wednesday, with Allegri already under criticism for his substitutions in the closing stages against Inter.

Seven years since the last meeting at the Maradona

The last official meeting between the two sides at the Maradona came on 18 April 2019, in the Europa League quarter-finals: Arsenal won 0-1 through an Alexandre Lacazette free-kick. Seven years on, the Gunners return to Fuorigrotta with the same aim as then — taking three points from a ground where they have already won.

The more recent Champions League history weighs heavier still. Last season, under Conte, Napoli finished the league phase 30th, with one win, two draws and five defeats — including a 6-2 loss to PSV, the club's heaviest European defeat in its history. That is the backdrop against which Allegri's first continental outing will be measured: changing coach does not automatically change results, and Wednesday is the first real chance to prove otherwise.

A defence already short-handed

Napoli go into the test with their defence already stretched: Buongiorno and Marianucci are both out injured, McTominay has had surgery for an arrhythmia, and Giovane remains sidelined after inguinal hernia surgery. Against a Scudetto-winning Inter side, Napoli held out for one half before falling apart. Against an Arsenal side travelling for a full haul of points, they will need an identity that has not yet appeared, amid a formation changed mid-course and late calls on team selection.

By 21:00 on Wednesday, it will be clear whether the Champions League can be where Allegri's Napoli find their first real answer, or whether the collapse at San Siro was only the opening chapter of an already uphill season.