We’re around halfway through the 2022/23 campaign and, with the Champions League groups done and dusted (and some other major tournament happening this winter nearing its conclusion), we can look forward to the knockout stages of Europe’s elite club competition.
32 teams have been whittled down to 16, with a whole barrage of drama and thrills to come over the coming months as we cut those down to just two for the showpiece event.
The excitement of the Champions League knockout rounds will commence with the round of 16, with first legs taking place on the 14, 15, 21 and 22 February and second legs scheduled for 7, 8, 14 and 15 March.
Drawn on 7 November and including all four of the English teams that entered the competition, the round of 16 ties are as follows:
After finding out which sides will progress to the final eight of this season’s Champions League, the draw for the quarter-final matchups will take place on 17 March, with the first legs being played on 11 and 12 April before the second legs a week later, on 17 and 18.
Meanwhile, the semi-final draw will also take place on 17 March with first legs scheduled for 9 and 10 May, before second leg battles take place on 16 and 17 of the same month to see who advances to that lucrative final.
Set to be played out on 10 June 2023, the 2022/23 Champions League final will be held at Istanbul’s Ataturk Olympic Stadium.
Straddling two continents, Turkey’s largest city homes the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in its western, European reaches in the district of Ikitelli. The stadium, opened in 2002, is the country’s biggest ground, boasting a capacity of just over a whopping 75,000.
It is not unfamiliar to the Champions League, either. The Ataturk Olympic Stadium hosted that ‘famous night in Istanbul’ all of 17 years ago, as Liverpool pulled off one of the greatest European comebacks to beat Milan in the 2005 Champions League final.
It was scheduled to host the 2020 final between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich and later the 2021 final between Manchester City and Chelsea, but eventually lost out to Portuguese venues due to COVID-19 restrictions – although it will get its second UCL final this year.
The Ataturk Olympic Stadium has been used by a number of top-flight Turkish sides on a temporary basis, including current residents Faith Karagumruk since their promotion to the Super Lig in 2020, as well as hosting the country’s national side.
How many people watch the Champions League final?
With around 75,000 pairs of eyes glued to the action inside the Ataturk Olympic Stadium, there’ll be a whole load more from around the globe captivated through TV screens.
It is estimated that the Champions League final pulls in around 400 million viewers in an audience spanning the entire world.
In the UK, the Champions League final is one of the most watched events in the sporting calendar, with BT Sport reporting a live viewership of 12.6 million people for last season’s bout between Liverpool and reigning European champions Real Madrid.
Looking ahead to next season’s Champions League final, UK-based fans can get pretty excited. European football’s showpiece event for 2023/34 is scheduled to place on 1 June 2024 at none other than Wembley Stadium.
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