UCL Draw Highlights, Round Of 16: Barcelona To Face Newcastle, Real Madrid To Play Man City In RO16

The Line-ups are ready! 

Bodo/Glimt and Sporting CP vs Bayer Leverkusen and Arsenal (QF1)

PSG and Chelsea vs Galatasaray and Liverpool (QF2) 

Newcastle United and FC Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid and Tottenham (QF3) 

Real Madrid and Man City vs Atalanta and Bayern Munich (QF4)

The draw ceremony is underway in Nyon! Stay tuned on NewsX for all the latest updates! 

The draw start time from around the world! 

Clubs have one final opportunity to register three new players for the knockout stages. This allows teams to register January signings or players returning from long-term injuries, regardless of whether those players already appeared in the competition for another club earlier this season.

The Round of 16 draw isn’t just about prestige; it’s about a massive injection of capital.

• Qualification Bonus: Every team reaching the Round of 16 receives an automatic €11 million payout.

• The €100M Club: Because of their perfect 8-win league phase and market value “value pillar” payments, Arsenal and Bayern Munich are already estimated to have earned nearly €96–€100 million before even playing a knockout game.

What do you say Barca fans? PSG or Newcastle United? 

Under the old format, third-place group finishers dropped into the Europa League. Under the 2026 rules, there is no second chance. The 12 teams eliminated during the league phase (including clubs like Juventus and Inter Milan, who were knocked out in the playoffs) are finished with European football for the season.

The draw doesn’t just pair teams; it places them into a fixed bracket.

• Seeding Pairs: Rank 1 (Arsenal) and Rank 2 (Bayern Munich) are paired together. One will be drawn into the top half (Silver), and the other into the bottom half (Blue).

• The Path to the Final: This means the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds are mathematically protected from facing each other until the final in Budapest. Similarly, Rank 3 and 4 (Liverpool and Tottenham) are split so they cannot meet until a potential semi-final.

With the bracket fixed according to league positions, the potential blockbuster ties are already mapped out.

Manchester City or Sporting CP are set to meet either Real Madrid or surprise contenders Bodø/Glimt.

Arsenal or Bayern Munich will be drawn against Bayer Leverkusen or Atalanta.

Meanwhile, Barcelona and Chelsea are lined up for a dramatic showdown with either Newcastle United or PSG.

The teams who all be competing for the biggest prize in Europe! 

Seeding provides a tangible benefit beyond the bracket position. All top 8 seeded teams are guaranteed to host the second leg of the Round of 16 at home. Furthermore, teams that finished in the top 4 of the league phase will also enjoy home advantage for the second leg of the Quarter-finals, should they progress.

In a major departure from previous years, country protection is now abolished for the knockout stages. English clubs can face other Premier League sides, and teams that met during the league phase are eligible to be drawn against one another immediately.

To ensure the highest-ranked teams are spread across the bracket, UEFA utilizes a pairing system. Teams are grouped based on their final league ranking:

• Rank 1 & 2 are paired.

• Rank 3 & 4 are paired, and so on.

During the draw, one team from a pair is randomly assigned to the “Silver” side of the bracket, while the other is placed on the “Blue” side. This mathematical separation ensures that the 1st and 2nd seeds (Arsenal and Bayern Munich) cannot meet until the final.

The 16 remaining clubs are divided into two distinct groups based on their performance in the league phase:

• Seeded Teams: The top 8 finishers from the league phase (e.g., Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Liverpool). These teams received a bye and did not play in the February playoffs.

• Unseeded Teams: The 8 winners of the knockout phase playoffs (e.g., Real Madrid, PSG, Newcastle).

Little over 60 minutes to go! Are you ready for the draw? 

The Round of 16 first legs are scheduled for March 10–11, with the decisive return fixtures on March 17–18. Because Friday’s draw also determines the quarter-final and semi-final brackets, teams will walk away knowing exactly who stands between them and the trophy on May 30.

The reigning champions survived a scare against Monaco to stay in the hunt for a consecutive title.

With five Premier League clubs and Newcastle joining them via the playoffs, the English presence is overwhelming.

Norway’s Bodø/Glimt has become the neutral’s favorite. After upsetting Inter Milan in the playoffs, they are the first club from the Arctic Circle to reach the Last 16.

The “Big Eight” seeded teams have dominated the conversation this season. Arsenal, having topped the league phase with clinical efficiency, lead a powerful English contingent that includes Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham, and Chelsea. Alongside them, European royalty like Bayern Munich and Barcelona have looked equally formidable.

However, the “unseeded” pot is anything but weak. It features the defending champions PSG and the kings of the competition, Real Madrid, both of whom had to navigate the playoffs after uncharacteristic stumbles in the league phase. Their presence as unseeded teams creates the potential for “Final-level” matchups as early as March.

The 2025/26 UEFA Champions League has reached its most pivotal moment. The draw in Nyon will outline the entire knockout journey, from the Round of 16 to the grand finale at the Puskás Aréna. After an intense league phase and the drama of the February playoffs, 16 clubs remain. For the top seeds who enjoyed a mid-winter break, the real work begins now. For the playoff survivors, momentum is their greatest weapon.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the UEFA Champions League draw all the way from Nyon, Switzerland!