Real Madrid’s streak in the Champions League threatened by Man City

Carlo Ancelotti’s team failed to qualify directly for the round of 16 and will now face Pep Guardiola and City in the playoffs.

By far the most successful club in the history of the Champions League, Real Madrid would not have anticipated failing to qualify directly for the round of 16 of the revamped 2024/25 edition of the tournament.

That, however, is the predicament Carlo Ancelotti’s team find themselves in after finishing 11th in the new initial league phase, with only the top eight securing direct qualification for the round of 16.

As a result, Madrid must navigate the two-legged knockout phase playoffs to reach the last 16. And to make matters worse, they will come up against Pep Guardiola and Manchester City, who have endured a difficult season but will likely have been seen as a more difficult challenge than Scottish champions Celtic, who were Los Blancos’ other potential opponents in the playoffs.

Real Madrid’s long UCL streaks at risk

A defeat to City, which is entirely realistic, would end two long Real Madrid streaks in the competition. The LaLiga giants have featured in the round of 16 (and usually later stages) in each of the last 26 editions of the Champions League.

The last time they didn’t came in the 1996/1997 season, when they weren’t involved in European competition after only finishing sixth in LaLiga the previous year.

It would also be the first time in 33 years since the Champions League was rebranded, ahead of the 1992/23 season, that Madrid have qualified for the tournament and not reached the round of 16.

Until now, they’ve made it 27 times out of 27; will they make it 28 out of 28 to keep up their 100% record? We’ll know by the time the second legs of the knockout phase playoffs are completed on Wednesday, February 19.