London [UK], January 29 (ANI): The knockout phase of the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League has taken shape, with 24 teams securing their spots in the business end of Europe's premier club competition.

Eight teams have earned direct qualification to the Round of 16 after finishing at the top of the standings. Arsenal, Barcelona, Bayern Munchen, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Sporting CP and Tottenham Hotspur booked automatic progression, avoiding the upcoming knockout phase play-offs.

Meanwhile, 16 teams will battle it out in the knockout phase play-offs for the remaining eight places in the Round of 16. Those confirmed in the play-offs include Atalanta, Atletico de Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Benfica, Bod/Glimt, Club Brugge, Galatasaray, Inter Milan, Juventus, Bayer Leverkusen, Monaco, Newcastle United, Olympiacos, Paris Saint-Germain, Qarabag and Real Madrid.

Several notable clubs have bowed out of the competition at this stage. Ajax, Athletic Club, Copenhagen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Kairat Almaty, Marseille, Napoli, Pafos, PSV Eindhoven, Slavia Praha, Union Saint-Gilloise and Villarreal were among those eliminated.

The knockout phase play-offs are scheduled for February 17/18 and 24/25, 2026, with the Round of 16 to follow on March 10/11 and 17/18. The quarter-finals will be held in early April, while the semi-finals are set for late April and early May.

The 2025/26 Champions League season will conclude with the final in Budapest on May 30, where Europe's best will battle for continental glory.

Earlier on Wednesday, the UEFA Champions League 2025-26 witnessed multiple interesting encounters during matchday 8 as Benfica thrashed Real Madrid at their home venue and Arsenal continued their unbeaten streak in this season.

Kylian Mbappe's brace went in vain as Benfica thrashed Real Madrid 4-2 in an interesting encounter at Estadio da Luz in Lisbon. Arsenal continued their unbeaten run in the league with a dominating 3-2 win over Kazakhstan's Kairat. Alexis Mac Allister scored a brace as Liverpool FC thrashed Azerbaijani club Qarabag FK 6-0 on Wednesday night to remain at the third place in the points table of the UEFA Champions League 2025-26. Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) played out a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United at Parc des Princes in Paris.

Barcelona defeated Copenhagen 4-1 after trailing by one goal in the first half. Chelsea dominated Napoli with a 3-2 win during matchday 8 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples. Pep Guardiola's Manchester City secured an easy win over Turkish side Galatasaray. Tottenham defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 as Inter Milan dominated against Borussia Dortmund. Monaco played out a goalless draw with Juventus. Bayer Leverkusen thrashed Villarreal 3-0 and Club Brugge also smashed Marseille 3-0 in their respective matchday 8 encounters. (ANI)