Champions League draw: Bayern Munich face Manchester City, Chelsea take on Real Madrid in quarterfinals

The quarterfinal matchups will be decided on Friday morning

The UEFA Champions League quarterfinal and semifinal draws will took place on Friday in Nyon, Switzerland. With no seeding rules at this stage, any of the teams could face each other and sides from the same country could be, and were drawn together with Napoli and AC Milan being the familiar foes set to face each other. The draw kicked off at 7 a.m. ET on Paramount+ and it provided plenty of intrigue. The headline event may be Manchester City squaring off against Napoli, but the biggest news is that City, and Bayern are joined by Real Madrid on the same side of the bracket, while the three Italian teams, and Benfic are on the other side, meaning an unexpected finalist is assured  in Istanbul

More to come.

Champions League quarterfinals

Real Madrid vs. Chelsea
This is a rematch of last year's quarterfinal, a dramatic back and forth tie that ended 5-4 with Madrid advancing to the semifinals. Carlo Ancelotti will once again be facing his old club (and, in fact there's a possible world where the well travelled manager could face three clubs he's managed on the way to the title in Chelsea, Bayern Munich and then Napoli or AC Milan).

Inter vs. SL Benfica
Inter get their second Portuguese side in a row after narrowly advancing past Porto in the round of 16. This will be no easy task for the Italian side as Benfica have looked dominant in both the Champions League and their domestic league this season. where they lead Porto by eight points.

Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich
The marquee matchup of the quarterfinal round this is the first time these two sides have met since the group stage in 2014-15. Bayern, then managed by current City boss Pep Guardiola top the group although each of these sides won their head-to-head matchup at home. It's a stroke of misfortune for these two sides, the odds-on favorites to win the tournament, to get drawn together at such an early stage.

AC Milan vs. Napoli
The fact that AC Milan, Napoli and Inter are all draw on the same side of the bracket mean that either Benfica will be the most unlikely finalists in a generation or an Italian side will be vying for the Champions League title in Istanbul. Napoli have dominated Serie A, where they have an 18 point lead in the table, can they repeat the trick in Europe?

Champions League semifinals

• AC Milan or Napoli vs. Inter Milan or SL Benfica
• Real Madrid or Chelsea vs. Manchester City or Bayern Munich

Champions League schedule

Quarterfinals
First legs: April 11-12
Second legs: April 18-19

Semifinals
First legs: May 9-10
Second legs: May 16-17

Final
Saturday, June 10 

Europa League quarterfinals

• Manchester United vs. Sevilla
• Juventus vs. Sporting CP
• Bayer Leverkusen vs. Union SG
• Feyenoord vs. Roma

Europa League semifinals

• Juventus or Sporting CP vs. Manchester United or Sevilla
• Feyenoord on Roma vs. Bayer Leverkusen or Union SG  

Europa Conference League quarterfinals

• Lech Poznan vs. Fiorentina
• Gent vs. West Ham United
• Anderlecht vs. AZ Alkmaar
• Basel vs. Nice

Europa Conference League semifinals

• Lech Poznan or Fiorentina vs. Basel or Nice
• Gent or West Ham United vs. Anderlecht or AZ Alkmaar  

[Mar 17, 2023 at 8:37 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

UEFA draw recap

A reminder of what has happened so far across the Champions League and Europa League draws...

Confirmed UCL quarterfinals
Real Madrid vs. Chelsea
Inter Milan vs. SL Benfica
Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich
AC Milan vs. Napoli

Confirmed UCL semifinals
AC Milan or Napoli vs. Inter Milan or SL Benfica
Real Madrid or Chelsea vs. Manchester City or Bayern Munich

Confirmed UEL quarterfinals
Manchester United vs. Sevilla
Juventus vs. Sporting CP
Bayer Leverkusen vs. Union SG
Feyenoord vs. Roma

Confirmed UEL semifinals
Juventus or Sporting CP vs. Manchester United or Sevilla
Feyenoord on Roma vs. Bayer Leverkusen or Union SG

[Mar 17, 2023 at 8:35 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Europa Conference League draw to come

Do not forget about the Europa Conference League which could create some interesting ties of its own given the eclectic mix of teams that it boasts before the draw.

Europa Conference League

• Anderlecht (Belgium)
• Gent (Belgium)
• West Ham United (England)
• Nice (France)
• Fiorentina (Italy)
• AZ (Netherlands)
• Lech Poznan (Poland)
• Basel (Switzerland)

[Mar 17, 2023 at 8:18 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Confirmed UEL quarterfinals

Manchester United vs. Sevilla
Juventus vs. Sporting CP
Bayer Leverkusen vs. Union SG
Feyenoord vs. Roma

Confirmed UEL semifinals

Juventus or Sporting CP vs. Manchester United or Sevilla
Feyenoord on Roma vs. Bayer Leverkusen or Union SG

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:55 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Europa League draw coming up

Not long now until the Europa League which equally boasts a good amount of quality teams which could set up some fantastic ties.

• Union Saint Gilloise (Belgium)
• Manchester United (England)
• Bayer Leverkusen (Germany)
• Juventus (Italy)
• Roma (Italy)
• Feyenoord (Netherlands)
• Sevilla (Spain)
• Sporting CP (Portugal)

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:46 am ET · James Benge]

Predicting how this'll go

Here's my suggestion for how the Champions League will go:

Quarter finals

Real Madrid eliminate Chelsea

Inter Milan eliminated by Benfica

Manchester City eliminate Bayern Munich

AC Milan eliminated by Napoli

Semi finals

Napoli eliminate Benfica

Real Madrid eliminated by Manchester City

Final

Napoli beat Manchester City

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:35 am ET · James Benge]

Are Napoli favorites now?

The draw has opened up spectacularly for the Serie A leaders, who would have to be considered strong favorites against any of the teams they draw. Luciano Spalletti's side might have lost to Inter, who they could draw in the semis, but they've been so dominant in Italy that you suspect they will not be all that stressed by the prospect of two ties against domestic opposition. Benfica are an intriguing unknown but we know enough about Napoli to be convinced they are special. The path to the final has really opened up for the Partenopei. If they get that far... who knows?

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:21 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Top draw

Some great clashes there! Good news for Serie A with one Italian side guaranteed to reach the semifinals which could even be an all-Italian semi. City vs. Bayern is tasty and then the winner up against Real or Chelsea is also incredibly exciting.

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:19 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Confirmed UCL semifinals

AC Milan or Napoli vs. Inter Milan or SL Benfica

Real Madrid or Chelsea vs. Manchester City or Bayern Munich

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:17 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Confirmed UCL quarterfinals

Real Madrid vs. Chelsea
Inter Milan vs. SL Benfica
Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich
AC Milan vs. Napoli

[Mar 17, 2023 at 7:07 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Draw coming up

We have the guys going through the rules at the moment and Hamit Altintop has arrived so that can only mean that the draw is not too far away. Those balls can never be too hot! Some potentially huge ties could be about to arrive. Patrick Kluivert has made an appearance too -- on St. Patrick's Day!

[Mar 17, 2023 at 6:53 am ET · James Benge]

The rules of the draw

The rules are... there are no rules! Well there's all the usual stuff about two matches being played, extra time, home and away, yadda yadda. But we are now in an unseeded, fully open draw where any team can be paired with anyone else, no longer are there the country and group stage protections that there were in the round of 16. We will also be given each team's path to the final, with the draws for the semifinals made straight after the quarters.

To quote from UEFA regulations, so that you really get a grasp on what's going to be happening in Nyon: "Eight balls containing the names of the quarter-finalists are placed in a large central bowl and shuffled. The first team drawn plays its first match at home, against the second team drawn. The procedure is repeated with the remaining balls in the bowl to complete the quarter-final pairings."

One final addendum to add, AC Milan and Inter Milan cannot play home games within 24 hours of each other. By virtue of being Italian champions, the former will get priority access to their shared ground. If the two teams are drawn to play in the same sequence (e.g. home first, away second) it will be Inter's tie that gets switched.

[Mar 17, 2023 at 6:51 am ET · Mike Goodman]

House of Champions live watch along of Champions League draw

If you can't get enough of James Benge and Jonathan Johnson following along here, check out the House of Champions podcast where they'll be joining the crew and live streaming a watch along of the event. And remember to follow House of Champions for all your soccer podcast needs, including all the transfer latest with Fabrizio Romano, postgame analysis of all the biggest Champions League matches, and much much more. And of course, everything you need to know about Pep Guardiola's obsession with Julia Roberts.

[Mar 17, 2023 at 6:30 am ET · James Benge]

The teams still standing

We've got 24 teams left in European competition. Here's the state of play across the three tournaments:

Champions League: Chelsea (England), Benfica (Portugal), AC Milan (Italy), Bayern Munich (Germany), Inter Milan (Italy), Manchester City (England), Real Madrid (Spain), Napoli (Italy)

Europa League: Union Saint Gilloise (Belgium), Manchester United (England), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Juventus (Italy), Roma (Italy), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Sevilla (Spain), Sporting CP (Portugal)

Europa Conference League: Anderlecht (Belgium), Gent (Belgium), West Ham United (England), Nice (France), Fiorentina (Italy), AZ (Netherlands), Lech Poznan (Poland), Basel (Switzerland)

[Mar 17, 2023 at 6:29 am ET · Mike Goodman]

Champions League draw: How to watch

Make sure to catch the draw from start to finish on Paramount+. And after Europe's premier competition sorts out who's playing who, don't forget that the Europa League draw will also be happening and you can stick around to see who Manchester United, Juventus, Roma and the rest will be facing as they progress in the final eight.

Date: Friday, March 18 | Time: 7 a.m. ET
Location: UEFA headquarters -- Nyon, Switzerland
TV and live stream: Paramount+

[Mar 17, 2023 at 6:17 am ET · Jonathan Johnson]

Today's slate

Good morning, all! Today is the final UEFA draw day and this will map out the route to the finals of the Champions League, Europa League, and the Europa Conference League. Obviously, UCL will be the first order of business, followed by the UEL, and finally the UECL. Lots of great teams on display which should make for some exceptional matchups which we will break down as they happen.

[Mar 16, 2023 at 7:48 pm ET · Roger Gonzalez]

Welcome in!

Welcome to the CBS Sports' live blog for the UEFA Champions League draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals! We will find out the quarterfinal matchups shortly! Jonathan Johnson will be with us in a moment to provide all you need to know!