Champions League Overview

GM football fans. It’s Tuesday, Feb. 18 - a Champions League overview, Europe’s best title race, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.

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FIXTURES

Champions League, Knock-out Play-offs, Leg 2: AC Milan vs Feyenoord, Agg 0-1, 17:45 / 12:45. Despite going into the game down on aggregate, Milan have won their last three UCL games at San Siro and haven’t lost at home in 12 games now in all competitions. Atalanta vs Club Brugge, Agg 1-2, 20:00 / 15:00. Brugge won the first leg against Atalanta. Still, they have been eliminated on 16 occasions in major European competitions when they’ve won the first leg of a knockout tie, more than any other side in history. Bayern Munich vs Celtic, Agg 2-1, 20:00 / 15:00. Bayern are unbeaten in the UCL for 20 games, with only four draws. Meanwhile, in five meetings with Bayern, Celtic have never won. See the full list of fixtures here.

Results…

• La Liga: Barcelona 1-0 Rayo Vallecano (Match Report)

• Serie A: Genoa 2-0 Venezia (Match Report)

• EFL Championship: Leeds United 2-1 Sunderland (Match Report)

TOP TALKING POINTS

Champions League Overview

The second leg of the inaugural Champions League knock-out play-offs begins on Tuesday (Feb. 18). The eight clubs that win on aggregate will qualify for the round of 16. See the bracket here.

Tuesday’s fixtures are tightly contested, with each team holding only a one-goal advantage on aggregate. The highlight fixture is between Bayern Munich and Celtic, after the German side triumphed 2-1 in the first leg. Opta’s predictor gives Bayern a 77.5% chance of winning the second leg, while Celtic’s odds stand at 9.5%. The rest of the home teams—Atalanta (versus Club Brugge), AC Milan (versus Feyenoord), and Benfica (versus Monaco)—are all expected to win their fixtures. Notably, though, AC Milan and Atalanta are currently behind on aggregate.

Wednesday sees the pick of the ties between Real Madrid and Manchester City–with the former having a 78.2% chance of winning the fixture following their 3-2 win at the Etihad in the first leg. Both Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund won 3-0 away at Brest and Sporting CP, respectively, in their first-leg matches, making it challenging for the travelling sides to progress in the tournament.

See potential team line-ups here.

Ticket Price Freeze

Liverpool have announced a freeze on general admission and season ticket prices for the 2025-26 season. This news comes despite the club’s claim that matchday operating costs have risen by 80% since the 2016-17 season.

Last month, several Liverpool supporter groups collectively wrote an open letter to the club, warning that increased ticket prices threatened to “kill the Kop.” Ticket prices rose by 2% ahead of this season. Adult general admission tickets at Anfield will continue to cost between £9 and £61, with the price of adult season tickets ranging from £713 to £904.

Frustrations with rising ticket prices have grown across the Premier League, with Crystal Palace the only top-flight club not to raise prices for this season. Yesterday, Manchester United were accused of setting “callous” ticket prices for their upcoming FA Cup match against Fulham—tickets will range from £51 to £61, higher than the price cap of £30 per ticket for away supporters in Premier League games.

Dive deeper into the rising cost of being a Premier League fan here.

Europe’s Best Title Race

The 2. Bundesliga, Germany's second tier, is delivering one of Europe's most thrilling title races this season. With 12 games remaining, the competition for the two automatic promotion spots—and the single play-off position against the 16th-placed Bundesliga side—is intensifying.

Currently, only six points separate the top nine clubs after 22 matches in this 18-team league. This season, seven different clubs have led the table, and more than a quarter of the games have ended in draws. See the league table here.

The league also boasts impressive attendance figures, with an average of over 30,000 fans per game, surpassing England's second tier, which reportedly averages 21,900. A spokesperson told the BBC that this is because the German second tier is “not distorted like the Championship is with these parachute payments coming down.” Another noted that the title race is the result of smaller, well-run clubs competing with traditional giants facing challenging times.

POLL

ON THE BALL

Europe

> Pep Guardiola says Manchester City have a "1%" chance of beating Real Madrid in Wednesday's Champions League playoff round second-leg clash in Spain (More) | Casemiro says he would like to stay at Manchester United until his contract expires in 2026 (More)

> Jude Bellingham could technically face a 12-game ban after being sent off for allegedly swearing at a referee (More) | Frenkie De Jong has reportedly decided to renew his contract with Barcelona (More) | Villarreal and Valencia are working together with authorities after two disabled Villarreal fans were physically assaulted during a La Liga match (More)

> Vinicius Junior has bought 70-80% of Portuguese second-division side FC Alverca (More) | Crypto company Tether has bought a minority stake in Italian giants Juventus; it’s the first time a digital asset brand has invested in a major European club (More)

> Chloe Kelly has been called into the England squad to replace the injured Beth Mead for their Women's Nations League matches this month (More)

Americas

> Neymar scored his first goal for Santos since returning to Brazil when he converted a penalty in a 3-1 win over Sao Paulo-based Agua Santa (Watch / via X); reports suggest the Brazilian wants to continue at Santos beyond this summer (More)

> Leon maintain top spot in Liga MX following their 2-1 win over San Luis; Pachuca overcame Puma in a 2-1 home victory (League Table)

> El Salvador secured back-to-back wins on home turf at the 2025 El Salvador Beach Soccer Cup; The U.S. Women’s Beach Soccer National Team finished third after one win, one draw and one loss (More)

Rest of the World

> Macarthur FC captain Valere Germain has quit the Sydney-based team in the lead up to the A-League playoffs, with club management citing his frustration with refereeing decisions (More)

> Nike and Football Australia have partnered with Reko Rennie, which will see the first Australian National Football Team Collection designed by a First Nations Artist (More)

ROUTERS’ VOICE

Yesterday’s Poll: Do you think swearing at the referee justifies a direct red card?

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🔴 Absolutely... (66%)

🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅 Nope... (30%)

⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other… (3%)

Your punditry takes:

• 🔴 E.F: “If you're a professional person, you should remain so with all the people you interact with. Also, there are literally millions of kids watching. The match official must ensure player and game etiquette, or the game gets out of hand with high emotions.”

• 🙅 M.M: “Come on, we’re all adults here and we say things in the heat of the moment. A yellow card, I can understand, but a straight red over what essentially boils down to a lack of respect? Get a grip.”

• ✍️ C.S: “If the player were to go directly up to the ref's face and start swearing at him, send him off. But if he were to say something like "that was a horrible ******* call" it doesn't deserve a straight red, maybe a yellow and then a second yellow if it happens again. In Jude's case he (from what I've heard) certainly wasn't directing anything towards the ref, just expressing his frustration. So it really is based off of the situation, I don't think Jude should've been sent off, maybe cautioned.”

EXTRA TIME

David Beckham trademarks his name in Russia.

The first match at Eveton’s new stadium. 

The Premier League title race simplified.

Adidas release women’s Euro 2025 away kits.

Why the Scottish Premiership is failing in the transfer market.

Ranking the top 50 MLS prospects.

The last Nike Premier League ball has been revealed.

Lottery winners invest in women’s football club.

What is it like playing against your childhood club?

How a loan deal gets done in the National League.

GAME FACE ON

Question: Who scored the only goal in the 1992 Champions League final between Sampdoria and Barcelona?

Clue: Joint top scorer in the following campaign.

Scroll below for the answer.

ON TODAY

Champions League Knockout Play-offs

• AC Milan vs Feyenoord (Agg 0-1) (17:45)

• Atalanta vs Club Brugge (Agg 1-2) (20:00)

• Bayern Munich vs Celtic (Agg 2-1) (20:00)

• Benfica vs Monaco (Agg 1-0) (20:00)

EFL Championship

• Preston North End vs Millwall (19:45)

*All time in UK. ET -5. CST -6. PST -8. MST -7. CET +1.

Answer

Ronald Koeman scored the free kick at Wembley. Watch the goal here.