UEFA Champions League scenarios: Which teams can qualify for ...

The UEFA Champions League is entering a fantastic few weeks, with the League Phase wrapping up with the final two matchweeks.

MORE — Champions League schedule

There will be a manic finale of the League Phase on Wednesday, January 29 as all 36 teams will play at the same time (3pm ET) with 18 games deciding who finishes where and who makes it through the last 16 automatically and makes the playoffs.

And that is exactly what the new format was supposed to do, generate chaos until the very end of the group stage and only two teams are officially in the playoffs for the last 16. But teams can start sealing their spot in the last 16 by finishing in the top eight of the 34-team League Phase this week.

MORE — Will Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal and City qualify for the last 16 automatically?

As a reminder to how it all works: the teams who finish 1-8 in the League Phase table reach the last 16 automatically, while the teams who finish 9-24 play a two-legged knockout round game (teams 9-16 seeded and 17-24 unseeded) to reach the last 16. The teams who finish 25-36 are eliminated from Europe altogether.

Below are a look at the scenarios for each team, with so much still to play for.

Which teams have secured a spot in at least the Champions League playoffs for last 16?

No matter what happens in their final two League Phase games both Liverpool and Barcelona know they are at least in the playoff round. Liverpool have secured at least a seeded spot in the playoffs, while Barca will at least be an unseeded team. It’s highly-likely both will qualify automatically for the round of 16 and avoid the playoffs altogether, which is the main aim for all of the big boys. Liverpool need just one point from their final two games to secure a spot in the top eight.

Which teams are in the hunt to qualify automatically for the Champions League last 16?

It may have been better to have the headline above read “which teams aren’t in the hunt to qualify?” as 26 teams are still able to finish in the top eight and qualify automatically for the last 16.

The following teams are all still in the hunt to finish in the top eight going into the final two games:

Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Aston Vila, Inter Milan, Brest, Lille, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, Atalanta, Juventus, Benfica, Monaco, Sporting Lisbon, Feyenoord, Club Brugge, Real Madrid, Celtic, Manchester City, PSV Eindhoven, Dinamo Zagreb, PSG, Stuttgart

Which teams cannot advance to the last 16 automatically, but can still reach the playoff round?

Shakhtar Donetsk and Sparta Prague can’t finish in the top eight and therefore can’t reach the last 16 automatically, but both can still finish as one of the seeded teams for the playoff round. Sturm Graz, Girona, Red Star Belgrade, Red Bull Salzburg and Bologna can’t finish in the top eight either but they can finish as one of the unseeded teams for the playoff round.

Which teams have been eliminated from the Champions League?

Young Boys, Slovan Bratislava and RB Leipzig still have two games to play in the League Phase but they cannot qualify for the playoff round and will be eliminated from Europe (no dropping down to the Europa League anymore) for the rest of the season.

UEFA Champions League table — Latest standings from 2024-25 league phase

• Top eight spots qualify directly for knockout rounds
• Positions 9-24 are matched up in two-legged playoff ties
• Positions 25-36 are eliminated from all European competitions

1. Liverpool — 6-0-0 — +23 GD — 18 points
2. Barcelona — 5-0-1 — +14 GD — 15 points
3. Arsenal — 4-1-1 — +9 GD — 13 points
4. Bayer Leverkusen — 4-1-1 — +7 GD — 13 points
5. Aston Villa — 4-1-1 — +6 GD — 13 points
6. Inter Milan — 4-1-1 — +6 GD — 13 points
7. Brest — 4-1-1 — +4 GD — 13 points
8. Lille — 4-1-1 — +3 GD — 13 points
9. Borussia Dortmund — 4-0-2 — +9 GD — 12 points
10. Bayern Munich — 4-0-2 — +9 GD — 12 points
11. Atletico Madrid — 4-0-2 — +6 GD — 12 points
12. AC Milan — 4-0-2 — +3 GD — 12 points
13. Atalanta — 3-2-1 — +9 GD — 11 points
14. Juventus — 3-2-1 — +4 GD — 11 points
15. AS Monaco — 3-1-1 — +5 GD — 10 points
16. Benfica — 3-1-2 — +3 GD — 10 points
17. Sporting Lisbon — 3-1-2 — +2 GD — 10 points
18. Feyenoord — 3-1-2 — -1 GD — 10 points
19. Club Brugge — 3-1-2 — -2 GD — 10 points
20. Real Madrid — 3-0-3 — +1 GD — 9 points
21. Celtic — 2-3-1 — 0 GD — 9 points
22. Manchester City — 2-1-3 — +4 GD — 8 points
23. PSV Eindhoven — 2-2-2 — +2 GD — 8 points
24. Dinamo Zagreb — 2-2-2 — -5 GD — 8 points
25. Paris Saint-Germain — 2-1-3 — 0 GD — 7 points
26. Stuttgart — 2-1-3 — -3 GD — 7 points
27. Shakhtar Donetsk — 1-1-4 — -8 GD — 4 points
28. Sparta Prague — 1-1-4 — -11 GD — 4 points
29. Sturm Graz — 1-0-5 — -5 GD — 3 points
30. Girona — 1-0-5 — -6 GD — 3 points
31. Red Star Belgrade — 1-0-5 — -9 GD — 3 points
32. Red Bull Salzburg — 1-0-5 — -15 GD — 3 points
33. Bologna — 0-2-4 — -6 GD — 2 points
34. RB Leipzig — 0-0-6 — -7 GD — 0 points
35. Slovan Bratislava — 0-0-6 — -16 GD — 0 points
36. Young Boys — 0-0-6 — -19 GD — 0 points