Champions League Draw 2016: Date, Time, TV, Live Stream Info for Semis and Final
The semi-final fixtures for the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League will be set on Friday, April 15, with the draw taking place in Nyon, Switzerland.
Defending champions Barcelona are out after Atletico Madrid downed them in the last eight, and Diego Simone's side are joined in the semi-final draw by local rivals Real Madrid, Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and first-timers Manchester City.
Atleti and City are arguably the surprise entries after they knocked out Barca and Paris Saint-Germain respectively, but the quality on show is suitably high for the semi-final stage of Europe's biggest club competition.
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Here are all the details for the draw:
Date: Friday, April 15
Time: 10:30 a.m. BST/5:30 a.m. ET
Location: Nyon, Switzerland
TV Info: Available to view live on Sky Sports News HQ and BT Sport Europe (UK only)
Live Stream: UEFA will provide a live stream on its official website. UK viewers can also use the BT Sport app or Sky Go.
Here's a look at the Champions League semi-finalists:
| Real Madrid (ESP) | Manchester City (ENG) |
| Atletico Madrid (ESP) | Bayern Munich (GER) |
Semi-final ties will take place April 26/27 and May 3/4. A draw will also take place to decide whether the winner of semi-final 1 or semi-final 2 is designated as the home team for the May 28 final in Milan.
Barca Elimination Opens Up Draw
Barcelona's superlative side looked on course to be the first to successfully defend the famous trophy in the Champions League era—the last side to win back-to-back European Cups was AC Milan, who triumphed in 1989 and 1990.
However, Atleti put paid to Blaugrana dreams on Wednesday night with a brilliant 2-0 victory at the Vicente Calderon.
Simeone's men are now genuine contenders, not least because their defence is arguably the best in Europe.
Bayern, Real and City all have fearsome attacking units, but whichever one draws Atleti in the last four will have to work out how to get past their seemingly impenetrable back line, per football writer Miguel Delaney:
Following Barca's elimination, though, it is arguably Bayern who are the favourites to win the competition.
In Pep Guardiola, they have a manager who will be desperate to cement his legacy at the club with a Champions League victory before he takes over at City in the summer.
Indeed, if the German giants are drawn against the Sky Blues in the last four, there will be some additional tension across the tie.
In terms of pure quality, Bayern are the best side remaining in the competition, with Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe ranking them as the best team in Europe:
Guardiola has the experience of winning the Champions League twice in the last seven years as manager of Barcelona, and his expertise could prove valuable.
Real, of course, are not to be discounted. They are going for their 11th crown and showed real quality in turning around a 2-0 deficit to advance past Wolfsburg in the quarter-finals.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick to engineer the victory, and the Portuguese will be pivotal for Los Blancos regardless of the team they draw in the semi-finals. Often accused of not being a big-game player in recent seasons, Ronaldo's record in the Champions League—the top level of European football—is quite staggering, as demonstrated by WhoScored.com:
And the former Manchester United man could be extra motivated if Real draw City in the last four.
Manager Manuel Pellegrini is looking to bow out of his role at the Etihad Stadium in the most triumphant of fashions by leading City to Champions League glory.
With their two-legged victory over PSG, they proved they have what it takes to see off major opposition. The return of Kevin De Bruyne from injury has been crucial to their recent revival.
City are in uncharted territory this deep into the Champions League, but they have little to lose as they are likely to be given underdog status whichever side they draw.
A place in the final is within touching distance, and the pressure is huge for all four sides, who will know what stands between them and the San Siro after Friday's draw.
