The UEFA Champions League’s knockout phase will kick off on Tuesday, February 11-12 with the return legs to be played the week after, on February 18-19 and will determine the eight teams that will face the first eight sides that already qualified in the League Phase. Some big teams, including Real Madrid and Manchester City, will play the knockout phase while others such as Liverpool and Arsenal have already qualified for the Round of 16 of the tournament. Let’s take a look on what you need to know ahead of the playoffs.
The League Phase
The new format was introduced this season as 36 teams participated in the league phase of the tournament, with the top eight teams qualifying for the Round of 16 directly, while the teams that finished ninth through 24th will face off against each other in the knockout phase playoffs, which will follow the regular rules of the Champions League knockout competition. Each tie is a two-legged series that will be decided by the aggregate score and, if needed, extra time and penalty kicks. This is why teams like Liverpool, Arsenal or FC Barcelona will be back at the beginning of March, once the bracket will be completed.
The next round
The winners in the knockout phase playoffs will then head to the round of 16 and will face the top eight sides from the league phase. The ties for the round of 16 will be decided by predetermined pairings and then finalized in a draw on Feb. 21. Here’s a look at the potential matchups.
- Liverpool‘s possible opponents in round of 16: PSG, Benfica, Monaco, Brest
- Barcelona‘s possible opponents in round of 16: PSG, Benfica, Monaco, Brest
- Arsenal‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Milan, PSV, Feyenoord, Juventus2
- Inter‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Milan, PSV, Feyenoord, Juventus
- Atletico Madrid‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Celtic, Manchester City
- Bayer Leverkusen‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Celtic, Manchester City
- Lille‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Atalanta, Borussia Dortmund, Sporting, Club Brugge
- Aston Villa‘s possible opponents in round of 16: Atalanta, Borussia Dortmund, Sporting, Club Brugge
Key Champions League dates
- Feb. 11-Feb. 19: Knockout phase playoffs
- Feb. 21: Draw for the round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final
- March 4-12: Round of 16
- April 8-16: Quarterfinals
- April 29-May 7: Semifinals
- May 31: Final
How to watch
Paramount+ will carry every minute of the action during the knockout phase playoffs, including The Golazo Show, with CBS Sports Network, CBS Sports Golazo Network and CBS Sports Golazo on YouTube offering additional coverage. CBS Sports Golazo Network will kick things off with Champions League Matchday on both Tuesday and Wednesday before the UEFA Champions League Today pre-match show begins on CBS Sports Network and Paramount+. Both CBS Sports Network and Paramount+ will also have the UEFA Champions League Today post-match show and CBS Sports Golazo Network will close things out with new editions of The Champions Club and Scoreline.
Knockout phase playoffs TV schedule
All times U.S./Eastern
