The new Champions League format for 2025 will see the knockout play-off round in action for the first time in February, to decide which teams enter the last-16.
The top eight teams in the final Champions League league-phase table are automatically through to the last-16. They will be joined by the winners from the play-offs, a set of eight two-legged ties between those clubs who finished from ninth to 24th in the league standings.
There are five British sides in the Champions League, with Liverpool, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Manchester City and Celtic all hoping to go far in the competition.
Here is all you need to know about the Champions League draw for the play-offs and beyond.
When is the Champions League draw?
The Champions League play-offs draw will take place on Friday, 31 January 2025. The draw will take place from 11am GMT.
How can I watch the draw?
The draw takes place at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland, and will be streamed live on UEFA.com.
How does the draw work?
The teams that finished between ninth and 16th in the league standings will be seeded for the play-offs draw, and they will each be drawn against an unseeded team that finished between 17th and 24th in the table.
The seeded team will have the slight advantage of playing the second leg at home.
Teams will also be paired together in the draw, so the two sides who finished ninth and 10th will be drawn against either the 23rd or 24th placed sides, the teams who finished 11th and 12th will be drawn against either the 21st or 22nd-placed sides, and so on.
The eight winners from the play-offs will meet the top eight from the league phase in the last 16, where straight knockout rounds will run all the way to the final.
Which teams could face each other in the draw?
With the format explained above of the teams finishing 9th and 10th facing those in 23rd or 24th etc, we now know the possible pairings.
9th/10th to play 23rd/24th – Atalanta/Borussia Dortmund to play Sporting/Club Brugge
11th/12th to play 21st/22nd – Real Madrid/Bayern Munich to play Celtic/Manchester City
13th/14th to play 19th/20th – AC Milan/PSV to play Feyenoord/Juventus
15th/16th to play 17th/18th – PSG/Benfica to play Monaco/Brest
When will the play-off matches be played?
The Champions League play-offs will take place over two legs on 11/12 and 18/19 February 2025.
Who has qualified directly for the last 16?
The clubs who finished in the top eight of the group stage qualified directly for the last 16. Those teams are:
- 1st: Liverpool
- 2nd: Barcelona
- 3rd: Arsenal
- 4th: Inter Milan
- 5th: Atletico Madrid
- 6th: Bayer Leverkusen
- 7th: Lille
- 8th: Aston Villa
When is the draw for the last-16 and quarter-finals?
The draw for the last-16 and subsequent rounds will take place on 21 February 2025, after the play-offs have concluded.
Which teams could face each other in the last 16?
With the group-stage positions sorted, we now know the potential ties for the last 16. Teams have again been grouped into two depending on their qualifying position and they will be drawn against the two winners from a certain section of the play-offs.
So, the teams in 1st and 2nd will face the two winners from the 15th/16th/17th/18th section of the last-16 draw, the teams who came 3rd and 4th will face the two winners from the 13th/14th/19th/20th section, and so on.
Here’s the full list of those matches:
7th/8th to play 9th/10th/23rd/24th – Lille/Aston Villa to play Atalanta/Borussia Dortmund/Sporting/Club Brugge
5th/6th to play 11th/12th/21st/22nd – Atletico Madrid/Bayer Leverkusen to play Real Madrid/Bayern Munich/Celtic/Manchester City
3rd/4th to play 13th/14th/19th/20th – Arsenal/Inter Milan to play AC Milan/PSV/Feyenoord/Juventus
1st/2nd to play 15th/16th/17th/18th – Liverpool/Barcelona to play PSG/Benfica/Monaco/Brest
Champions League knockout round dates
Knockout phase play-offs: 11/12 & 18/19 February 2025
Last-16: 4/5 & 11/12 March 2025
Quarter-finals: 8/9 & 15/16 April 2025
Semi-finals: 29/30 April & 6/7 May 2025
Where and when is the Champions League final?
The final will be held at the Allianz Arena in Munich on 31 May 2025.
