Champions League last-16 draw confirmed as Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle discover paths to final

The draw for the Champions League last 16 and beyond has been confirmed, with the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea discovering their potential paths to the final.

The Gunners are arguably the biggest winners of Friday's draw ceremony, as Mikel Arteta's men - who topped the league phase - have been handed a winnable last-16 clash with Bayer Leverkusen.

Should Arsenal come through that encounter, they would also be the favourites to get the better of either Sporting Lisbon or Bodo/Glimt in the quarter-finals, although the history-making latter have stunned Inter Milan and Manchester City earlier in the competition.

Nevertheless, the Premier League leaders will be expected to overcome either Sporting or Bodo en route to the semi-finals, where one of Newcastle United, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid or Tottenham Hotspur will be lying in wait.

Newcastle will reunite with Barca following their league-phase loss to the Magpies in September, while Tottenham take on Diego Simeone's Atletico for the right to face either Eddie Howe's men or the Blaugrana in the quarters.

Champions League draw: Real Madrid face Man City as Chelsea tackle Paris Saint-Germain

On the other, star-studded side of the draw, Man City face familiar foes Real Madrid in the knockout rounds for the fourth season in a row, and for the second time in the 2025-26 tournament following a 2-1 league-phase win at the Bernabeu.

If Pep Guardiola's men can eliminate the 15-time winners of the competition, their reward could be a quarter-final contest with Bayern Munich, who meet Italian outfit Atalanta BC next up.

Meanwhile, holders Paris Saint-Germain will have to get past Chelsea to reach the last eight of the competition - a repeat of the 2025 Club World Cup final - while Liverpool will clash with Galatasaray for the chance to face PSG or the Blues.

There are a multitude of potential blockbuster semi-finals on that side of the draw, including Chelsea vs. Bayern, Chelsea vs. Man City, Chelsea vs. Real Madrid, Liverpool vs. Man City, Liverpool vs. Real Madrid, PSG vs. Real Madrid and PSG vs. Man City.

With all of PSG, Chelsea, Bayern, Man City and Real Madrid on the opposite side of the draw to Arsenal and Barca, the Gunners and the Blaugrana ostensibly have terrific chances to reach this year's final in Budapest on May 30.

When is the Champions League last 16?

The top eight teams in the league phase will all play the first legs of their last-16 clashes away from home, before welcoming their foes to their headquarters for the return fixture one week later.

The first legs of those contests will be held across March 10-11, before the second legs on March 17-18, and a full match schedule is expected to be released by UEFA on Friday evening.

The quarter-finals of the competition will then be held between April 7-8 and April 14-15, while the semi-finals are scheduled for April 28-29 and May 5-6.