The group phase of this season’s UEFA Champions League concluded on Wednesday night with all 18 matches played simultaneously across Europe, bringing clarity to the clubs that have secured automatic qualification for the round of 16 and those heading into the knockout play-offs.
Arsenal emerged as group winners after a hard-fought 3–2 victory over bottom-placed Kairat Almaty, sealing top spot in their group. Bayern Munich also finished strongly, defeating PSV to secure second place and progress automatically to the last 16.
Alongside Arsenal and Bayern, six other teams booked direct qualification to the round of 16 following the final round of fixtures.
They are Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, Chelsea, Sporting and Manchester City, all of whom finished among the top eight teams in the expanded league standings.
Attention now turns to the clubs placed between ninth and 24th, who must navigate the knockout play-offs to keep their Champions League hopes alive.
The teams heading into this phase are Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Newcastle United, Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, Olympiacos, Club Brugge, Galatasaray, Monaco, Qarabag, Bodo/Glimt and Benfica.
The knockout play-off draw, which will determine the matchups for the next stage of the competition, is scheduled to take place on Friday. The ties are expected to deliver high-stakes encounters as Europe’s elite battle for a place in the last 16.