Champions League Draw: champions league draw to decide last-16 paths on Friday
The champions league draw will reveal which opponents the 16 qualified sides will face when the knockout phase begins. The draw takes place on Friday February 27 from 11: 00 GMT (6: 00 ET) and will also allocate sides of the bracket through to the final.
Who is already through
Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur are already in the hat. Newcastle progressed to join those five after seeing off Qarabag; Newcastle won their play-off first leg 6-1 and won the tie 9-3 on aggregate. Newcastle are set to face either Chelsea or Barcelona in their knockout tie.
Play-off outcomes and remaining ties
The eight winners of the two-legged knockout phase play-offs will join the top eight sides from the league-phase table in the draw. On Wednesday the names in the hat for the last-16 will be confirmed as remaining play-off ties conclude. Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain hold a 3-2 lead before hosting Monaco, with the winner set to face Chelsea or Barcelona. Galatasaray hold a 5-2 advantage over Juventus after the first leg in Istanbul last week, and Galatasaray can set up a tie with Liverpool or Tottenham. Real Madrid lead Benfica 1-0. Borussia Dortmund have a 2-0 lead over Atalanta. Atletico Madrid completed a 7-4 aggregate victory over Club Brugge to advance from the knockout play-off round and have been confirmed as one of Liverpool's two possible opponents; Liverpool's other potential rival will emerge from the Juventus v Galatasaray tie.
Champions League Draw mechanics
The draw will not only pair last-16 opponents but also allocate a side of the bracket for all teams, meaning clubs will know potential quarter-final, semi-final and final opponents. From this point onward the competition adopts a knockout format, with each fixture other than the final contested over two legs. As with the play-offs, teams' final ranking in the league phase will influence seeding in the last 16: seeded sides are those that finished in the top eight of the league phase and are given the advantage of playing second legs at home.
Seeding for quarter-finals and semis
This season is the first in which league-phase position also influences seeding for the quarter-finals and semi-finals. Teams finishing first to fourth at the end of the league phase will be seeded for the quarter-finals and therefore given the home advantage in their quarter-final tie second legs. The two sides who finish top and runner-up in the league will also be seeded for the semi-finals, earning them the benefit of playing the second leg of their semis at home should they reach that stage. If a seeded team does not progress to the quarter- or semi-finals, the team that knocks them out will inherit their seeding position.
Potential matchups and scheduling
Clubs already know the lists of opponents they could face in the Champions League last 16. Top seeds Arsenal will be drawn against one of Olympiakos, Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen or Atalanta. Liverpool and Tottenham, who finished third and fourth respectively in the league phase, will meet either Atletico Madrid, Club Brugge, Galatasaray or Juventus. Manchester City will be drawn against one of Bodo/Glimt, Inter Milan, Real Madrid or Benfica. Bodo/Glimt eliminated Inter Milan and will face either Manchester City or Sporting. Bayer Leverkusen will play Bayern Munich or Arsenal.
Dates, bracket path and English meetings
Last-16 first legs will take place on either 10 or 11 March, with the reverse fixtures scheduled for 17-18 March. The draw for the last 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals will be made on Friday February 27 from 11: 00 GMT (6: 00 ET). The earliest opportunity for two English sides to meet is in the last 16, when Newcastle could come up against Chelsea. The earliest opportunity for any other all-English meetings is in the quarter-finals, when Manchester City could meet Arsenal, and when Chelsea or Newcastle could meet Tottenham or Liverpool. Newcastle will also find out on Friday whether Tottenham or Liverpool are potential quarter-final opponents and whether they are on course for a potential semi-final with Manchester City or Arsenal.
The Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary will host the 2025-26 final on 30 May.
On Friday, when the champions league draw is made, the full bracket path from last 16 through to the final will be known and seeded positions will determine which clubs enjoy second-leg home advantages in each tied round.
