Who Are Real Madrid Playing in the Champions League Round of 16? | OneFootball

Real Madrid punched their tickets to the Champions League round of 16 and now await their opponents for the next stage of their European title defense.

For the second consecutive season, Real Madrid eliminated Manchester City in the Champions League knockout stage. Kylian Mbappé scored his first hat trick at the Santiago Bernabéu to give his side the 3–1 victory in the second leg, sending City back home on the wrong side of a 6–3 aggregate score.

Los Blancos are now one of just eight teams advancing from the Champions League knockout phase playoffs. Waiting for the defending Spanish and European champions in the round of 16 are two potential opponents that could give Real Madrid a much tougher fight than City.

Who Are Real Madrid Playing in the Champions League Round of 16?

Real Madrid will either play Atlético Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League round of 16. Los Blancos must prepare to face their La Liga rivals or the defending Bundesliga champions.

The Champions League round of 16 draw unfolds on Friday, Feb. 21 at 6 a.m. ET/11 GMT. Not only will Real Madrid find out their opponents for the competition's next stage, but the entire bracket will finally take shape ahead of the round of 16. Each team's path to the Champions League final in Munich will become much clearer once the draw concludes.

The first leg of the thrilling tie kicks off on either Tuesday, Mar. 4 or Wednesday, Mar. 5 at the Santiago Bernabéu. Real Madrid will have to travel to either the Metropolitano in Madrid or the BayArena in Leverkusen for the second leg the following week.