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Real Madrid have learnt their opponent in the Round of 16 of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League with the reigning champions being drawn against Manchester City in the knockout stages.
Having finished outside the top eight in the league phase, the Merengues had to go through an additional playoff, where they defeated Benfica 3-1 on aggregate across two legs.
From the knockout phase play-offs onwards the tournament is a bracket with potential opponents in the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals also pre-defined by pairings which are determined by teams’ final league positions.
Teams that finished first and second in the league phase will face the winners of the knockout phase play-off ties involving the 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th-placed teams in the round of 16 and so on.
With Sporting and Manchester City finishing seventh and eighth respectively, they would be facing winners of the playoffs involving the ninth (Real Madrid), tenth (Inter Milan), 23rd (Bodo/Glimt) and 24th (Benfica).
With Real Madrid and Bodo/Glimt prevailing in their respective playoff games, it came down to Los Blancos facing either Pep Guardiola’s men or the Portuguese outfit. As it would turn out, they have now been drawn against Man City.
The teams who finished in the top eight are seeded and will be at home in the second leg.
As such, the first leg will played at the Santiago Bernabeu on March 10/11 and the second leg at the Etihad on March 17/18.
QF and SF draw
With the brackets for the entire tournament now set, Real Madrid, should they get through from the Round of 16, will face the winners of Atalanta vs Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.
Provided, they prevail there as well, a semi-final date would await against one of PSG, Chelsea, Galatasaray, or Liverpool.