The 2025 UEFA Champions League Draw Is Fast Approaching, but How Does It Work?

The 2025 edition of the UEFA Champions League is rapidly approaching, but before we can determine exactly what that tournament will look like, we need to wait for the draw. The draw determines exactly who will face off in each round of the competition.

Given how crucial the draw will be to how the tournament ultimately plays out, many want to know when the draw will be. Here's what we know.

The draw will be held at 12 CET (6 a.m. EST) on Friday, Feb., 21 at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland. The draw will determine matchups for the round of 16, the quarterfinal, and the semifinals.

The top eight teams in the league phase automatically advance, and the next eight teams are determined by the league knockout rounds, which are new to the competition this year.

The draws don't determine the matchups completely, but the first draw is used to determine which side of the bracket the seeded teams will be on. The draw for the round of 16 will have four bowls, each containing a pair of teams. The first- and second-seeded teams will be in one bowl, then the third and fourth, etc. The first name drawn will go on one side of the bracket, and the second team the other.

Draws are also done for the quarterfinal round to determine which teams are playing at home first, and the same procedure is repeated for the semi-finals featuring the winners of the previous round games. These draws are designed to introduce an element of chance to a bracket that could otherwise be fixed entirely by seeding.

Fans will be eagerly waiting to see who their team will face off against. Here are the teams involved in the tournament:

League phase top eight (seeded, ordered by league phase position)

1. Liverpool (ENG)
2. Barcelona (ESP)
3. Arsenal (ENG)
4. Inter (ITA)
5. Atleti (ESP)
6. Leverkusen (GER)
7. Lille (FRA)
8. Aston Villa (ENG)

Knockout phase play-off winners (unseeded, ordered by league phase position): B. Dortmund (GER), Real Madrid (ESP), Bayern München (GER), PSV (NED), Paris (FRA), Benfica (POR), Feyenoord (NED), Club Brugge (BEL)