Champions League round of 16 draw: Real Madrid get Atleti, Bayern face Leverkusen, Paris paired with Liverpool
Friday, February 21, 2025
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The Champions League contenders have learned their path to Munich after the last 16, quarter-final and semi-final draws were made.
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The eight round of 16 ties in the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League are now set following the draw on Friday, with the quarter-final and semi-final draws also mapping out every team's route to potential glory in Munich.
Champions League round of 16 fixtures
First legs
Tuesday 4 March
Club Brugge vs Aston Villa (18:45 CET)
Borussia Dortmund vs Lille
PSV vs Arsenal
Real Madrid vs Atleti
Wednesday 5 March
Feyenoord vs Inter (18:45 CET)
Bayern München vs Leverkusen
Benfica vs Barcelona
Paris vs Liverpool
Second legs
Tuesday 11 March
Barcelona vs Benfica (18:45 CET)
Inter vs Feyenoord
Leverkusen vs Bayern München
Liverpool vs Paris
Wednesday 12 March
Lille vs Borussia Dortmund (18:45 CET)
Arsenal vs PSV
Aston Villa vs Club Brugge
Atleti vs Real Madrid
Champions League quarter-final draw
Paris (FRA)/Liverpool (ENG) vs Club Brugge (BEL)/ Aston Villa (ENG)
PSV (NED)/Arsenal (ENG) vs Real Madrid (ESP)/Atleti (ESP)
Benfica (POR)/Barcelona (ESP) vs Borussia Dortmund (GER)/Lille (FRA)
Bayern München (GER)/Leverkusen (GER) vs Feyenoord (NED)/Inter (ITA)
Champions League semi-final draw
PSV/Arsenal/Madrid/Atleti vs Paris/Liverpool/Club Brugge/Aston Villa
Benfica/Barcelona/Dortmund/Lille vs Bayern/Leverkusen/Feyenoord/Inter
When are the Champions League matches?
Quarter-finals: 8/9 & 15/16 April 2025
Semi-finals: 29/30 April & 6/7 May 2025
Final: 31 May 2025
How did the draw work?
How did the round of 16 draw work?
The clubs were paired based on their positions at the end of the league phase to form four seeded pairs (clubs in positions 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5 and 6, 7 and 8).
The clubs in each seeded pair were 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 were 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 allocated the side of the bracket for all the seeded teams, starting with the teams ranked 7/8 and finishing with the teams 1/2.
One ball was taken from the bowl containing the two relevant ranked teams (i.e. the teams ranked 7 and 8) and was opened to display the team. The first team drawn from this bowl was placed in their reserved spot on the silver side of the bracket. The other seeded team of the pairing was then drawn and displayed, and allocated in the corresponding reserved spot on the blue side of the bracket.
The same procedure was carried out with the remaining seeded teams.
In principle, the seeded clubs play the return leg at home.
How did the Champions League quarter-final draw work?
The draw was made to determine the order of the matches (i.e. which team will host the first leg and which team the return leg) as all the potential opponents are known until the final.
Four bowls were prepared for this draw, two for the silver side of the bracket and two for the blue side of the bracket. Each bowl contained two balls representing the winners of the round of 16 matches from one rung of the relevant side of the bracket, with the first silver bowl containing slips of paper marked 'Winners R16 1' and 'Winners R16 2' and the second silver bowl 'Winners R16 3' and 'Winners R16 4'.
The first bowl on the blue side contained slips of paper marked 'Winners R16 5’ and 'Winners R16 6' and, finally, 'Winners R16 7' and 'Winners R16 8' in the second bowl on the blue side.
The draw started by shuffling and then drawing the balls placed in the first bowl of the silver side of the bracket. The first ball drawn from this bowl indicated the team which will play the first match of the quarter-final at home, and the second ball the team which will play the return leg at home.
The procedure was repeated with the remaining bowls to complete the quarter-final pairings.
How did the Champions League semi-final draw work?
Two bowls were prepared for this draw, one for the silver side of the bracket with balls containing slips of paper marked 'Winners Q-F 1' and 'Winners Q-F 2', and one for the blue side of the draw containing 'Winners Q-F 3' and 'Winners Q-F 4'.
The draw started by shuffling and then drawing the balls placed in the bowl for the silver side of the bracket. The first ball drawn indicated the team which will play the first match of the silver side semi-final at home, and the second ball the team which will play the return leg at home.
The procedure was repeated with the remaining bowl to complete the semi-final pairings.
Was there also a draw for the Champions League final?
As the teams were designated to a side of the bracket by the draw for the knockout phase play-off / round of 16, no draw was made for the final. The winners of the semi-final on the silver side of the bracket are designated as the nominal home team for the final.
Where is the 2025 Champions League final?