The Champions League “playoffs” for the current 2025–26 season refer to the new knockout phase play‑offs that come right after the league phase. For this season, they are scheduled in February 2026.

Key dates (2025–26 season)

  • Knockout phase play‑offs (playoffs):
    • First legs: 17–18 February 2026
    • Second legs: 24–25 February 2026
  • Round of 16:
    • First legs: 10–11 March 2026
    • Second legs: 17–18 March 2026
  • Later rounds:
    • Quarter‑finals: 7–8 & 14–15 April 2026
* Semi‑finals: **28–29 April & 5–6 May 2026**

* Final: **30 May 2026 (Budapest)**

Simple view (HTML table)

Since you asked “when are the champions league playoffs,” here is a quick HTML table you can reuse:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Stage</th>
      <th>First Leg Dates</th>
      <th>Second Leg Dates</th>
      <th>Season</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Knockout phase play-offs (playoffs)</td>
      <td>17–18 February 2026</td>
      <td>24–25 February 2026</td>
      <td>2025–26</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Round of 16</td>
      <td>10–11 March 2026</td>
      <td>17–18 March 2026</td>
      <td>2025–26</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Quarter-finals</td>
      <td>7–8 April 2026</td>
      <td>14–15 April 2026</td>
      <td>2025–26</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Semi-finals</td>
      <td>28–29 April 2026</td>
      <td>5–6 May 2026</td>
      <td>2025–26</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Final</td>
      <td colspan="2">30 May 2026</td>
      <td>2025–26</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Quick Scoop–style note

  • The playoff ties that decide who reaches the round of 16 are all packed into late February 2026 , right after the league phase wraps up in January.
  • Fans are already debating playoff draw “bracket paths” on forums, especially around whether higher league‑phase finishers should get more advantage than they do under the current random‑draw system.

In forum threads, many supporters argue that if you grind through eight league‑phase games and finish high up the table, you should avoid a brutal playoff draw against another giant right away.

TL;DR: For “when are the champions league playoffs” this season, think mid and late February 2026 , with the rest of the knockouts running from March to the final on 30 May 2026.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.