Champions League Draw: Last-16 draw — dates, confirmed play-off outcomes and bracket seeding explained
Sixteen teams will discover their opponents in the champions league draw on Friday at 11: 00 GMT, when the last-16 draw is made. The draw will determine immediate opponents and allocate each side of the bracket so clubs will know potential quarter-final, semi-final and final pathways.
Champions League Draw timing and confirmation
The draw will take place from 11: 00 GMT on Friday (February 27). On Wednesday the names in the hat for the last 16 will be confirmed, and the draw on Friday will also set the quarter-final and semi-final bracket placements.
Who is already in the last 16
Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur were already in the hat. Newcastle joined them in the last 16 after a 9-3 aggregate win over Qarabag in the play-off round. Sixteen teams in total will be revealed in the draw, comprising the top-eight finishers from the league phase plus the eight winners of the two-legged knockout phase play-offs.
Confirmed play-off outcomes and pending ties
Several play-off results and first-leg leads are already shaping the possible last-16 ties:
- Newcastle progressed by winning 9-3 on aggregate over Qarabag and will face either Chelsea or Barcelona in the knockout tie.
- Atletico Madrid completed a 7-4 aggregate victory over Club Brugge and are confirmed as one of Liverpool's possible opponents.
- Galatasaray hold a 5-2 advantage over Juventus after the first leg in Istanbul and are one potential opponent for Liverpool or Tottenham.
- Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain hold a 3-2 lead before hosting Monaco; the winner of that tie will face Chelsea or Barcelona.
- Real Madrid lead Benfica 1-0 and can set up a tie with Sporting or Manchester City.
- Borussia Dortmund have a 2-0 lead over Atalanta and can earn the right to play Arsenal or Bayern Munich.
- Bodo/Glimt eliminated Inter Milan and will face either Manchester City or Sporting.
- Bayer Leverkusen will play Bayern Munich or Arsenal.
Matchup scenarios for English clubs
With the midweek play-offs concluding, many English clubs now know which two possibilities they face in the last 16. The earliest opportunity for two English sides to meet is in the last 16, when Newcastle could come up against Chelsea. Other potential all-English meetings could first occur in the quarter-finals, with Manchester City potentially meeting Arsenal and Chelsea or Newcastle potentially meeting Tottenham or Liverpool.
Projected opponent options for the English qualifiers are listed as follows:
- Arsenal: Bayer Leverkusen or Borussia Dortmund/Atalanta
- Chelsea: Newcastle or Monaco/PSG
- Liverpool: Atletico Madrid or Galatasaray/Juventus
- Manchester City: Bodo/Glimt or Benfica/Real Madrid
- Newcastle: Chelsea or Barcelona
- Tottenham: Atletico Madrid or Galatasaray/Juventus
Seeding, bracket mechanics and competition format
The eight winners of the two-legged knockout play-offs join the top-eight finishers from the league phase in the draw. From this point onward the competition adopts a knockout format, with each fixture other than the final contested over two legs. Teams' final ranking in the league phase will influence seeding in the last 16: seeded sides — those that finished in the top eight of the league phase — are given the advantage of playing second legs at home.
This is the first season that league-phase positions will also influence 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 second legs. The two sides who finish top and runner-up in the league phase will also be seeded for the semi-finals, earning 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.
Schedule through to the final and additional questions
Last-16 first legs will take place on either 10 or 11 March, with the reverse fixtures scheduled for 17-18 March. The Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary will host the 2025-26 final on 30 May. The evolving play-off outcomes have prompted wider questions in the competition: could seven Premier League clubs qualify for the Champions League? Italian clubs are described in the context as being on the brink of historic Champions League embarrassment. These broader storylines will be clarified as remaining play-off ties conclude and the draw is made.
Recent developments have left several ties settled and several still to be decided; the champions league draw on Friday at 11: 00 GMT will confirm the complete last-16 picture and lay out the knockout bracket through the quarter-finals and semi-finals.
