The path to the 2025 Champions League final is now mapped out following Friday’s draw for the round of 16, and there will be some titanic clashes on the way to the showpiece game in Munich on May 31.
Defending champions Real Madrid, Premier League leaders Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal must battle it out in the Silver Path to claim a place in the final. Bayern Munich and Barcelona, meanwhile, have been handed a route through the seemingly more straightforward Blue Path in the draw bracket.
But first the favorites to win the competition must navigate a way through the round of 16, and none of the heavyweights have an easy route to the quarterfinals.
The next stage is less than two weeks away, so what are the ties and who will make it to the quarterfinals?
SILVER PATH
This is a meeting between two of the surprise teams of the competition. Nicky Hayen’s Brugge pulled off an unexpected 5-2 aggregate win against last season’s Europa League winners Atalanta in the playoff round. Brugge are a team without stars, but their collective effort has taken them to the round of 16 and they have already beaten Villa this season — a 1-0 league stage win in Belgium in November — which will give them confidence of beating Unai Emery’s team.
But Villa could not have handpicked a better tie in their attempt to reach the latter stages and maybe even repeat their success of 1982, when they won the club’s only European Cup. Emery will have learned from the defeat in Brugge and his Villa team will be strong favorites, to book a quarterfinal clash against Liverpool or PSG especially with the second leg at home.
Winners: Aston Villa
Liverpool cruised through the league stage and finished top of all 32 teams with a record of seven wins and one defeat from eight games, whereas PSG needed victory at VfB Stuttgart in their final game to make it into the playoff round.
But don’t be fooled by PSG’s early struggles. Luis Enrique’s young team appear to have clicked in recent weeks, and they booked a round-of-16 place with a crushing 10-0 aggregate win against Brest in the playoffs. Ousmane Dembélé has become a talismanic figure for PSG, and they added former Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to their squad in January. Liverpool will be favorites, but this tie will be extremely close and PSG have the pace and confidence to beat Arne Slot’s side to seal a quarterfinal clash against Brugge or Aston Villa.
Winners: PSG
PSV’s playoff-round elimination of Juventus highlights the dangerous quality of Peter Bosz’s team. Former Tottenham Hotspur winger Ivan Perisic and the experienced center-forward Luuk de Jong are capable of making life tough for Arsenal, but it will be a tall order for the Dutch champions to beat them over two legs.
Mikel Arteta’s team are struggling with injuries right now, with forwards Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus out for the season, and that will impact their ability to win the Champions League for the first time. But the Gunners have too much overall quality against PSV, and they should make it through the quarterfinals and clash with Real or Atlético Madrid.
Winners: Arsenal
Here we go again. The two Madrid giants will lock horns in the Champions League for the fourth time in 11 years. It has been a tale of Real glory and Atlético agony during that period, with Real winning the final in 2014 and 2016 and also beating their neighbours in the 2015 quarterfinals and 2017 semis. Atlético have never eliminated Real from the competition — even losing a semifinal playoff in 1958-59 — but Diego Simeone’s team have played out two 1-1 derby draws in La Liga this season, so expect another tense and tight tie.
Real are flying right now, with a Kylian Mbappé hat trick helping seal a 6-3 aggregate win in their playoff against Manchester City. But Atlético are at home in the second leg of this tie and their luck against Real has to change at some point — doesn’t it? Maybe not.
Winners: Real Madrid
Benfica have goals in their side, though, with Vangelis Pavlidis netting seven Champions League goals so far this season and Kerem Aktürkoglu weighing in with four. But Barcelona are beginning to click under Hansi Flick and their front three of Robert Lewandowski, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha form arguably the best atacking trio in Europe. They should be too powerful for Benfica.
Winners: Barcelona
Dortmund are struggling for form in the Bundesliga, where they are 11th and working under their third coach since losing to Real Madrid in last season’s Champions League final. But new boss Niko Kovac guided Dortmund to a 3-0 aggregate playoff win against Sporting CP and forward Serhou Guirassy is the leading scorer in the Champions League this season with 10 goals, so the German giants will believe they can overcome Lille to book a quarterfinal against Inter or Feyenoord.
Lille will rely on the goals of Jonathan David and the creativity of Osame Sahrauoi to beat Dortmund and this tie really is too close to call. But with Kovac bringing experience to Dortmund, they just have the edge to make it through.
Winners: Borussia Dortmund
Sources have told ESPN that Robin van Persie will be appointed as Feyenoord coach in time to take charge of his first Champions League tie, but the former Arsenal and Manchester United forward has a huge challenge ahead of him against Inter. Simone Inzaghi’s team emerged from the league stage with the best defensive record, conceding just once in eight games and keeping seven clean sheets.
The Serie A champions only lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the 2023 Champions League final in Istanbul, and are a dangerous outsider win the competition for the first time since 2010. Inter are tough, experienced and hard to beat, with Lautaro Martínez and Marcus Thuram offering a real threat up front. Feyenoord beat AC Milan in the playoffs, but Inter will be too strong for Van Persie’s side.
Winners: Inter
