2025–26 Champions League Semifinals: Dates, Format, Teams

Only four of the original 36 teams remain in the fight for the Champions League trophy.

Only two teams can make it to Budapest to fight for the Champions League title. | Alex Pantling/UEFA/Getty Images

The stage is set for the Champions League semifinals, where two must-see ties will determine the finalists heading to Budapest at the end of May.

What was an action-packed league phase is nothing more than a distant memory as the Champions League knockout stage reaches its climax. Each round has seen European giants eliminated, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Liverpool the latest teams joining the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Inter Milan in despair.

Just four teams remain on the road to the Puskás Aréna, a number that will be halved at the conclusion of the semifinals. Only the best can survive the Champions League’s unrelenting format, and its remaining competitors are gearing up for their biggest battle yet.

Here’s everything you need to know about the semifinals of Europe’s premier club competition.

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2025–26 Champions League Semifinals: Dates

The Champions League semifinals are just two weeks away. | Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images

The Champions League semifinals are swiftly approaching. Teams only get one week off from European action before they must battle for a place in Budapest.

The first legs kick off during the final week of April and then the deciding legs unfold one week later in the early days of May.

Here’s when the next round of the competition will take place:

• First Leg: Tuesday, April 28 and Wednesday, April 29
• Second Leg: Tuesday, May 5 and Wednesday, May 6

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2025–26 Champions League Semifinals: Format

Players no longer have to worry about yellow card accumulation in the semifinals. | Sebastien Bozon/AFP/Getty Images

Much like the previous knockout stage rounds, the qualified clubs will play a two-legged tie, where the team with the highest aggregate score across the two legs will advance to the final.

If the tie is level come the end of regulation in the second leg, then extra time and potentially a penalty shootout will determine the winner. The old away goal rule no longer serves as a tiebreaker after UEFA abolished it from all its competitions in 2021 as a way to encourage home teams to attack more.

The one major change from the quarterfinals to the semifinals centers around yellow card accumulation. All yellow cards are reset after the quarterfinals, therefore players do not have to worry about being suspended for the second leg of the semifinals or a potential final.

The only way a player will miss either is if they earn a suspension from a red card.

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2025–26 Champions League Semifinals: Teams

Ousmane Dembélé led Paris Saint-Germain to the semifinals. | Alex Livesey/Danehouse/Getty Images

Of the original 36 teams that competed in the league phase, only the following four remain in the hunt for Europe’s most prestigious club trophy:

• Paris Saint-Germain
• Atlético Madrid
• Bayern Munich
• Arsenal

Defending cup holders Paris Saint-Germain comfortably dispatched Liverpool 4–0 on aggregate to advance to the semifinals, keeping their dream of becoming only the second club in history to go back-to-back.

Atlético Madrid’s quarterfinal tie with Barcelona was a lot tighter, but red cards in both legs for Hansi Flick’s men helped get Los Colchoneros over the line, punching their tickets to the next round 3–2 on aggregate.

Bayern Munich joined the three teams after a thrilling 4–3 victory over Real Madrid at the Allianz Arena. The German giants put six total goals past the 15-time European champions across both legs.

Completing the last four are Arsenal. It was anything but a vintage performance from the Gunners, but they won’t care. A late goal in the first leg against Sporting CP was enough to send Mikel Arteta’s men through to the next round 1–0 on aggregate.

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