The quarter finals of the Champions League is officially set, with eight teams vying for Europe’s most glorious prize. While a favorite isn’t clear yet, the underdogs definitely are.
Let’s rank the remaining contenders.
Eighth
The most obvious spot on this list has to go to last year’s finalists, Borussia Dortmund.
After a Cinderella run to last year’s final where Dortmund was picked to lose every round, their magic ran out in the final against Real Madrid.
The team’s going to need a lot more than magic against red-hot Barcelona, but as we’ve seen time and time again, anything can happen.
Seventh
Aston Villa is the sole remaining team lacking ‘big game’ experience. With a 42-year hiatus from the Champions League, The Villains remain overjoyed to even be included in the quarter finals draw at all.
This doesn’t mean they don’t have a shot — the 1982 team leaned on a backup goalkeeper in the final to win Villa’s first and only international trophy.
This year will require a similar story, but Unai Emery’s men believe in what he’s built and hope to beat his former employer PSG.
Sixth
Unsurprisingly, the top teams remaining in the competition are some of the top in Europe. As such, someone must take sixth place, and it has to be Italian league leaders Inter Milan.
Defending league champions and Champions League finalists two years ago, Inter have the experience to pursue a fourth title in club history.
This year is slowly starting to look similar to their 2010 season — their treble triumph and recent European Championship — facing Bayern Munich as they did in 2010’s final.
Fifth
After dominating rivals Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich is looking strong under first-year manager Vincent Kompany.
With last year’s collapse, being robbed of a finals appearance by two late Real Madrid goals, Harry Kane and company have a revitalized fire.
They will likely be without club legend and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, whose calf injury forced him off in the first leg against Leverkusen.
The Bavarians still remain confident with this year’s final being played in Munich — a home field advantage could be a great incentive and a nice way to win their seventh UCL title.
Fourth
Paris Saint Germain solidified themselves as a force after the Summer departure of Kylian Mbappé.
The new-look PSG, led by Ousmane Dembélé, upset English league leaders Liverpool at Anfield in the Round of 16.
Somehow, after spending billions in the past decade trying to win this competition with Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. now have their best chance of winning the tournament with young homegrown stars, showing that money doesn’t fix all.
With Aston Villa in the next round, the hottest attacking team in Europe may finally have their chance to earn their first Champions League title and France’s second of all time.
Third
Arsenal is one of only two teams left still looking for their inaugural European title.
The back-to-back runners up in England made their long-awaited return to the Champions League last year, and after falling in a close tie to Bayern in the quarterfinals, they’ll look to win the whole thing.
With the Premier League title basically out of reach and being out of both Carabao and FA Cups, the Gunners have one more chance to collect silverware and finally prove the Mikel Arteta project as a success.
Despite all the injuries, Arsenal stays confident with a back line that any team in Europe struggles to score against.
However, the draw has not proved favorable to the team that finished third in the group stage.
They will have to overcome the aura of Real Madrid with the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu to progress.
Second
It seems almost impossible to bet against the defending champion and record 15-time winner of the competition, but Real Madrid’s slightly beat up backline leaves them with a potential weakness.
The team still has the winningest manager in the competition’s history in Carlo Ancelotti, last year’s Ballon d’Or runner-up Vinicius Jr. and the illustrious Mbappé.
It seems, as every year, Real are favorites to win their favorite competition, and a 16th title could be well on its way.
First
My favorites for the competition are Madrid’s El Classico rival and five-time winners of the competition, FC Barcelona.
Hansi Flick’s men are flying sky-high and have yet to lose in 2025, mainly due to Ballon d’Or favorite Raphina, who leads both UCL goal and assist rankings.
Barcelona are also at the top of La Liga and battling Real, making the most bet-on combination for the final being an El Classico feature.
With a mixture of veterans in Robert Lewandowski and Wojciech Szczesny with young guns in Lamine Yamal and Pedri, Barcelona have found the mixture that could bring the club their first Champions League title in the post-Messi era.
With the Quarterfinals set to start April 8, all eight of these teams will be looking to take home the trophy.
We don’t know if it’ll be a first-timer for PSG or Arsenal, another addition to vast collections of Barcelona and Bayern or a record-extending 16th for Real Madrid, but we can be sure this Champions League will be a classic.
