When is The Next Round of the UEFA Champions League Being Played?
Football Blog
What are the Upcoming Dates and Fixtures for the Knockout Phase of the UEFA Champions League?
With the Knockout Playoff round concluded, the UEFA Champions League can begin to really heat up, as the knockout phase truly gets underway on the way to the final in Budapest.
The draw which will decide the round of 16 ties and the pathways to the showpiece event in Hungary's capital takes place tomorrow, February 27th, at 11am GMT as the competition looks to burst into life.
How Will the Draw Work?
The draw tomorrow will not only decide the upcoming Round of 16 ties but also the pathways for the two eventual finalists to reach Budapest.
The teams that finished in the top eight during the league phase. Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Tottenham, Barcelona, Chelsea, Sporting and Manchester City will each be drawn against an 'unseeded' team from the winners of the knockout playoff round.
Do you see your team? 👀
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) February 25, 2026
The last 16 is locked in 🔒#UCL pic.twitter.com/dTQAgc6x4N
From there, possible quarter- and semi-final ties will be drawn, fully cementing each path for each team to the final.
Who Can Play Who in the Round of 16?
After the knockout playoff rounds, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Galatasaray, Atalanta, Bayer Leverkusen and Bodø/Glimt made it through to the next round and qualified for the round of 16.
Those eight sides will each be drawn against a 'seeded' team that finished in the top eight of the league phase to make up the next round of fixtures.
Arsenal/Bayern vs Bayer Leverkusen/Atalanta
After a stunning second-leg comeback in Bergamo, Atalanta defeated German giants Borussia Dortmund to make the round of 16 with a 98th-minute penalty from former Chelsea defender Davide Zappacosta.
This is how a 98th-minute penalty in #UCL should be taken 👇#AtalantaBVB #GoAtalantaGo ⚫🔵 pic.twitter.com/SwBUxY2QyX
— Atalanta B.C. (@Atalanta_BC) February 26, 2026
The Italians were joined in qualifying by Bayer Leverkusen, who comfortably beat Greek champions Olympiacos 0-2 in Athens in the first leg before seeing out the job with a 0-0 draw back home in West Germany.
Meeting both Leverkusen and Atalanta will be the two teams that finished in the top two places of the league phase, Arsenal and Bayern.
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal finished in top spot, and as a result will be at home in the second leg of their round of 16, quarter- and semi-final ties if they reach that stage.
Liverpool/Tottenham vs Atletico Madrid/Galatasaray
Despite both finding themselves struggling in the Premier League, especially Tottenham, who currently see themselves in the fight for relegation, both Spurs and Liverpool saw themselves through straight to the round of 16.
The two English sides will each draw one of either Atletico Madrid or Galatasaray. The side from Spain’s capital eased through against Club Brugge from Belgium, whilst Turkish giants Galatasaray resisted an initial Juventus comeback to advance after extra time in Turin.
🌟 Şampiyonlar Ligi’nde yolumuza devam ediyoruz. 🦁 pic.twitter.com/vv55ALkS0o
— Galatasaray SK (@GalatasaraySK) February 26, 2026
Barcelona/Chelsea vs Paris Saint-Germain/Newcastle United
Last year’s champions, Paris Saint-Germain, failed to earn a place in the top eight; however, they defeated fellow Ligue 1 side AS Monaco in a thrilling two-legged tie.
From beginning to end, thank you for the support. ❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/Jxu9vNGxkZ
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) February 25, 2026
Meanwhile, Newcastle eased past Azerbaijan’s Qarabag, scoring nine times over the two fixtures. A possible all-English round of 16 matchup could take place, as Chelsea could draw the Magpies, with Barcelona the other seeded team to get either Eddie Howe’s side or Luis Enrique’s Parisians.
Sporting CP/Manchester City vs Real Madrid/Bodø/Glimt
Despite Qarabag’s feat of qualifying for the knockout playoffs, it’s Norway’s Bodø/Glimt who have been the Champions League’s greatest story this campaign. The Norwegians defeated Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in the league phase and shocked Inter Milan by beating the Italian side home and away to reach the round of 16 stage.
The last time a Norweigan club advanced in the UCL or European Cup knockout stage was 38 years ago.
— B/R Football (@brfootball) February 24, 2026
Bodø/Glimt are putting Norway back on the football map 🇳🇴 pic.twitter.com/r9TV0W3D4S
Real Madrid, meanwhile, also qualified for the next round after defeating Benfica in a rematch of the fixture that saw them fail to progress automatically originally. However, there were not to be any last-minute heroics from Benfica this time around.
The two seeded sides in this part of the draw are Manchester City and Benfica's city rivals Sporting CP, who scored a last-minute goal away at Athletic Club to sneak into the top eight.
When Will the Ties Be Played
The first leg of the round of 16 fixtures will take place between March 10th-11th, with the second legs taking place the week after on March 17th and 18th.
For the quarter-finals, April 7th-8th is the dates for the first legs, with April 14th-15th seeing the second legs take place
The semi-finals will then be held on April 28th-29th and May 5th-6th, before the showpiece event in Budapest on May 30th, where the new champions of Europe will be crowned.
The pathways for each team will be decided in tomorrow's draw in Nyon, Switzerland. Where the rest of the competition will be played out as the sixteen teams left look to make dreams a reality.
Ollie McCaw 
Jac Jones 
Alec Hayward 