Who will Barcelona play next in the Champions League? Round-of-16 opponents, UCL draw

Out of the three remaining Spanish teams left in this year’s Champions League, Barcelona were the only ones who didn’t have to book their place in the Last 16 via the playoffs.

Hansi Flick’s team finished the group stage occupying fifth position in the final standings, meaning they automatically qualified for the knockout stage and, as one of the seeded teams, they will have home advantage in the return leg of their Round of 16 tie.

Barça will find out who they face next in Friday’s draw but we already have some indications about which opponents they could be drawn against as the bracket has been determined.

From this point and for the remainder of the tournament, there is no country protection,so teams from the same association can now face each other. Teams can also face opponents they played during the league phase.

Newcastle or the title holders await

There are two teams that Barcelona could be drawn against - Newcastle United or defending champions Paris Saint-Germain. The Catalans have faced both rivals in previous editions - as well as in this year’s. Whoever they are pitted against, Barcelona will play the return leg at Spotify Camp Nou.

They have crossed paths with Newcastle three times - most recently in September. Barça traveled to St James for Matchday 1, coming away with a 1-2 win. Their first encounter was in the 1997–98 edition - both teams won their respective home legs but were eliminated at the group stage.

The next meeting was during the second group stage of the 2002–03 campaign with Barcelona beating the Magpies home and away.

Flick’s men faced PSG in Matchday 2 of this year’s competition. A late Gonçalo Ramos strike decided it. In total the two clubs have met 16 times in European competition, with a balance of six Barcelona wins, six PSG wins and four draws.

When is the 2025/26 Champions League Round of 16 draw?

The 2025/26 Champions League Round of 16 draw will be held at UEFA’s headquarters in Nyon on Friday February 27, starting at 12 noon start local time CET (6:00 a.m. ET / 3 a.m. PT).

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