The inaugural Champions League knockout play-offs are almost over and the last-16 draw awaits.
When is the Champions League last-16 draw?
The Champions League last-16 draw takes place on Friday February 21 at 11am – follow the draw live on the Sky Sports digital platforms.
The teams who finished in the top eight of the competition’s new league phase table automatically qualified for the last 16. They are Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille and Aston Villa.
They will be joined by the eight winners of the knockout play-offs. Four teams have been confirmed following Tuesday night’s matches: Bayern Munich, Benfica, Club Brugge and Feyenoord.
From the knockout play-offs onwards the tournament is a bracket with potential opponents in the last 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals pre-defined by pairings which are determined by teams’ final league positions.
There will also be a draw for the quarter-finals and semi-finals to decide which team will host the first leg and which team will host the return leg.
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah celebrates with team-mates Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones after scoring against Lille in the Champions League
Liverpool (1st seed)
Round of 16: vs PSG (15th), Benfica (16th), or Brest (18th).
Arsenal (3rd seed)
Round of 16: vs PSV (14th), Feyenoord (19th) or Juventus (20th).
Aston Villa (8th seed)
Round of 16: vs Borussia Dortmund (10th), Sporting (23rd) or Club Brugge (24th).
Manchester City (22nd seed)
Knockout play-offs: vs Real Madrid (12th).
Round of 16: vs Atletico Madrid (5th) or Bayer Leverkusen (6th).
First legs
Feb 11: Brest 0-3 PSG
Feb 11: Juventus 2-1 PSV Eindhoven
Feb 11: Man City 2-3 Real Madrid
Feb 11: Sporting Lisbon 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
Feb 12: Club Brugge 2-1 Atalanta (5.45pm)
Feb 12: Celtic 1-2 Bayern Munich (8pm)
Feb 12: Feyenoord 1-0 AC Milan (8pm)
Feb 12: Monaco 0-1 Benfica (8pm)
Second legs
Feb 18: AC Milan 1-1 Feyenoord (agg 1-2)
Feb 18: Atalanta 1-3 Club Brugge (agg 2-5)
Feb 18: Bayern Munich 1-1 Celtic (agg 3-2)
Feb 18: Benfica 3-3 Monaco (agg 4-3)
Feb 19: Borussia Dortmund vs Sporting Lisbon (5.45pm)
Feb 19: PSG vs Brest (8pm)
Feb 19: PSV Eindhoven vs Juventus (8pm)
Feb 19: Real Madrid vs Man City (8pm)
Liverpool’s Conor Bradley (left) tackles Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe
How does the Champions League last-16 draw work?
The top eight clubs are paired based on their positions at the end of the league phase to form four seeded pairs: 1st and 2nd, 3rd and 4th, 5th and 6th, 7th and 8th.
The clubs in each seeded pair are drawn into one of two positions in the round of 16 against the relevant winner of the knockout phase play-offs, whose position was determined by the knockout phase play-off draw.
Four bowls are prepared for the draw, with the balls containing the names of each pair of seeded teams placed in the corresponding marked bowls according to the league rankings.
The draw allocates the side of the bracket for all the seeded teams, starting with the teams ranked 7th and 8th and finishing with the teams 1st and 2nd.
One ball is taken from the bowl containing the two relevant ranked teams and is opened to display the team. The first team drawn from this bowl is placed in their reserved spot on the bracket The other seeded team of the pairing is then drawn and displayed, and allocated in the corresponding reserved spot on the blue side of the bracket.
- Last 16: March 4/5 and March 11/12
- Quarter-finals: April 8/9 and April 15/16
- Semi-finals: April 29/30 and May 6/7
- Final: May 31 at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena
