February 13th 2025.
Next month, Chelsea will kick off their Conference League knockout phase campaign. After the first leg of the play-off ties on Thursday night, we now have a better idea of who their potential opponents could be in the last-16. Enzo Maresca's team dominated the league phase, winning all six matches and securing their spot in the knockout stage.
Back in December, the draw for the play-off ties took place and Chelsea knew they would be facing one of four teams: Gent, FC Copenhagen, Real Betis, or FC Heidenheim. Real Betis seems to have a strong chance of making it to the knockout phase after their impressive 3-0 win against Gent in the first leg of their play-off. On the other hand, FC Heidenheim came from behind to snatch a late victory against FC Copenhagen in their first leg match in Denmark.
The second leg of the Conference League play-off ties will take place next Thursday. In case you missed it, here are the results from the first leg matches:
- Gent 0-3 Real Betis
- Vikingur Reykjavik 2-1 Panathinaikos
- TSC 1-3 Jagiellonia Białystok
- Celje 2-2 APOEL
- Copenhagen 1-2 Heidenheim
- Omonoia 1-1 Pafos
- Molde 0-1 Shamrock Rovers
- Borac 1-0 Olimpija
If you're wondering when the Conference League draw will take place, mark your calendars for February 21 at 13:00 GMT. You can catch the live stream on UEFA's website or YouTube channel.
So how exactly does the Conference League draw work? Four bowls are prepared, each containing the names of seeded teams based on their league rankings. The seven teams who have automatically secured their spot in the knockout phase alongside Chelsea are: Vitoria Guimaraes, Fiorentina, Rapid Vienna, Djurgarden, Lugano, Legia Warsaw, and Cercle Brugge.
During the draw, the seeded teams are allocated their place on the bracket, starting with the lowest ranked teams and ending with the highest ranked teams. For Chelsea and Vitoria de Guimaraes, they will be placed on opposite sides of the bracket. One ball is drawn from the bowl containing the two ranked teams and opened to reveal the first team's spot on the bracket. The other team from the pair is then drawn and placed on the opposite side of the bracket.
Mark your calendars again for March 6, which is when the first leg of the last-16 ties will be played. The return legs will take place the following week on March 13. Stay tuned for updates on who Chelsea's opponent will be in the last-16 of the Conference League.
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