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It might seem hard to wrap your head around right now as the Portland Timbers try to move up the table in Major League Soccer, but in just two months the 2016-17 CONCACAF Champions League will kick off and the Timbers will be a part of it. Before that happens, however, the Timbers will need to find out just who they are playing; that step will come tonight as the CCL groups are drawn.
Starting at 5:00 p.m. PT tonight, the Timbers and the other 23 teams participating in the 2016-17 CCL will be drawn into eight groups of three for the initial group rounds. Divided into three pots separated by geography, the Timbers will avoid the other American MLS sides -- but not Canada's Vancouver Whitecaps -- and the powerhouse Mexican sides that have dominated the tournament for years.
Here is the full listing of all three pots from CONCACAF's announcement of the draw:
Pot 1: Police United FC (BLZ), Central F.C. (TRI), W Connection F.C. (TRI), Don Bosco FC (HAI), Real Estelí F.C. (NCA), C.D. Plaza Amador (PAN), Alianza F.C. (SLV), C.D. Dragón or C.D. Águila (SLV)
Pot 2: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (CAN), Club Sport Herediano (CRC), Deportivo Saprissa (CRC), Antigua FC (GUA), C.S.D. Comunicaciones or C.D. Suchitepéquez (GUA), C.D. Honduras Progreso (HON), Club Deportivo Olimpia (HON), Deportivo Árabe Unido (PAN)
Pot 3: Pumas UNAM (MEX), Tigres UANL (MEX), CF Monterrey (MEX), CF Pachuca (MEX), Sporting Kansas City (USA), New York Red Bulls (USA), FC Dallas (USA), Portland Timbers (USA)
The draw will be streamed on Facebook and broadcast on Univision Deportes, giving all of us the chance to follow along and then say, "Who?" as the Timbers are drawn against the likes of Haiti's Don Bosco FC.