UEFA Champions League · Knockout Play-Off
Champions League Knockout Play-Off Tickets.
Two-legged February ties — the bridge between the league phase and the round of sixteen.
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About Champions League Knockout Play-Off Tickets
About Knockout Play-Off on Anyseats
The knockout play-off is the Swiss-format era's bridge round, contested across two midweeks in February by the sixteen clubs that finished ninth through twenty-fourth in the league phase. League-phase seeding determines pairings: ninth play twenty-fourth, tenth play twenty-third, and so on, with the higher-ranked club playing the second leg at home. The eight winners advance to the round of sixteen, where they meet the eight clubs that finished directly in the top eight. The eight losers drop out of European competition for the season — there's no parachute to the Europa League under the new format. The round has produced significant upsets: lower-pot clubs that took a points haul through the league phase have repeatedly toppled elite seeds in the play-off.
Featured events
Knockout Play-Off marquee events
- 01
First leg — second/third week of February
Lower-seeded clubs host first; the higher-seeded club plays the second leg at home.
- 02
Second leg — third/fourth week of February
Top-of-bracket clubs close out the tie at home. Away-goals rule no longer applies; tied aggregates go to extra time and penalties.
Major venues
Top Knockout Play-Off venues
Anfield
Tradition makes Liverpool a feared knockout-play-off draw at any seeding level.
Estadio Santiago Bernabéu
Real Madrid's knockout record — fifteen European Cups, more than the next two clubs combined — sets the bar.
Westfalenstadion (Signal Iduna Park)
Borussia Dortmund's 81,365-capacity home; the Yellow Wall is European football's loudest stand on a knockout night.
Format — how the play-off works
Sixteen clubs ranked 9th-24th in the league phase enter the knockout play-off. Pairings are pre-determined by league-phase finishing position: 9 vs 24, 10 vs 23, 11 vs 22, 12 vs 21, 13 vs 20, 14 vs 19, 15 vs 18, 16 vs 17. The higher-ranked club hosts the second leg. Ties are decided over 180 minutes of aggregate score, then 30 minutes of extra time, then penalty kicks. Away goals do not count double under UEFA's post-2021 rule change.
Bracket implications
Round-of-16 opponents are also pre-determined: the 9 vs 24 winner faces the league-phase 8th-placed club, with progressively higher seeds for play-off winners that emerged from harder pairings. This means clubs entering the play-off already know — if they win — exactly which top-eight side they'll meet in the round of sixteen, and that the round-of-16 second leg will be played at the top-eight club's stadium.
Form patterns
Across the play-off rounds since the format launched, lower-seeded clubs that finished 17th-24th have a stronger upset record than the seeding suggests — typically two or three of the eight ties produce a 'wrong-side' winner. Travelling fans should budget for the second leg even if the lower seed loses the first leg at home; the format produces tighter aggregate scores than the old straight-draw round of 16.
Buying tips
Tips for buying Knockout Play-Off tickets
- 01Second-leg tickets at the higher-seeded club's stadium command 20-40% above first-leg pricing — that's the round's value gap.
- 02First-leg fixtures at lower-seeded clubs (positions 17-24 in the league phase) tend to release on general sale; member priority is shorter.
- 03Travel logistics for back-to-back midweek away legs add cost — clubs sometimes offer combined member-priority sales for both legs at a discount.
- 04Watch the league-phase final matchday closely. A swing of even one or two positions changes the play-off opponent and the round-of-16 path.
FAQ
Knockout Play-Off ticket FAQs
When does the knockout play-off take place?
Across two midweeks in mid-to-late February, immediately after the conclusion of the league phase in January. UEFA confirms the exact matchdays in the autumn before the season starts.
Who plays in the knockout play-off?
The sixteen clubs that finished ninth through twenty-fourth in the Champions League league phase. The top-eight finishers skip this round; the bottom twelve are eliminated from European competition entirely.
Are the pairings drawn or pre-determined?
Pre-determined by league-phase position. 9th plays 24th, 10th plays 23rd, and so on. The higher-ranked club hosts the second leg.
Do away goals still count double?
No — UEFA scrapped the away-goals rule in 2021. Aggregate ties go to extra time and then penalties at the venue of the second leg.
What happens to losing play-off clubs?
They are eliminated from European competition for the season. There is no parachute to the Europa League under the post-2024 format.
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