Barcelona will look to avoid the same European pitfall that has stymied many Champions League title hopes over the years as they host pesky Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday.
The German giants may currently sit a disappointing eighth in the Bundesliga table, but they have been known to shed their patchy domestic form when European play comes around.
Leading the La Liga table by four points, Barcelona squeezed enough wiggle room out of last weekend’s league play that they can now focus primarily on the Champions League for the time being.
Niko Kovac has not exactly been impressive at the helm of Dortmund after taking over for Nuri Sahin in February, but he engineered the elimination of Sporting CP and Lille in their two Champions League knockout matchups thus far.
The Sporting News is following the Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund match live, providing score updates, commentary.
Latest live updates | Team news and lineups | How to watch where you are
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund score
| Score (Pregame) | Goal scorers | |
| Barcelona | – | – |
| Borussia Dortmund | – | – |
Location: Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium (Barcelona, Spain)
Referee: Espen Eskaas (NOR)
Keep track of every game and every goal via SN’s live Premier League scoreboard
Starting lineups:
Barcelona (4-2-3-1, right to left): 25. Szczesny (GK) — 23. Kounde, 5. I. Martinez, 2. Cubarsi, 3. Balde — 8. Pedri, 21. de Jong — 11. Raphinha, 16. F. Lopez, 19. Lamine Yamal — 9. Lewandowski.
Borussia Dortmund (4-2-3-1, right to left): 1. Kobel (GK) — 3. Anton, 23. Can, 5. Bensebaini — 26. Ryerson, 8. Nmecha, 17. Chukwuemeka, 43. Gittens — 10. Brandt — 9. Guirassy, 27. Adeyemi.
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Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund live updates, highlights from Champions League
45 mins to kickoff: Barcelona may not be playing their home games at the Camp Nou this season as the iconic venue continues renovations, but the Olympic Stadium is still a gorgeous spot for a Champions League affair!
📌 Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys#UCL #BarçaBVB pic.twitter.com/rGNqAF7HCO
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) April 9, 2025
1 hour to kickoff: Lineups are in! For Barcelona, the XI is exactly as expected with no surprises. Fermin Lopez starts at the No. 10 with Dani Olmo out injured, while Raphinha returns to the wing on significant rest.
For Dortmund, it’s largely as anticipated as well, with the only unexpected inclusion being Ramy Bensebaini, who passes fit to keep his place as the third central defender despite coming off injured over the weekend against Freiburg. It’s a welcome surprise given that Bensebaini was expected to miss a fair bit of time.
1 hour 15 mins to kick: Barcelona are heavy favourites today against Dortmund given the recent trajectories of the two teams. Will today’s hosts secure themselves a big advantage heading into the second leg, or will Barcelona have to navigate a tricky second leg on the road in front of the famed Yellow Wall with the aggregate scoreline hanging in the balance?
Fútbol Picks w/@the_bonnfire ⚽️ (THREAD)
FC Barcelona (-1.5) 😈#UCL #SportsBetting #BarçaBVB pic.twitter.com/OxJvbU3orG
— SportsGrid (@SportsGrid) April 9, 2025
1 hour 30 mins to kick: Barcelona will be well aware of the threat Borussia Dortmund pose regardless of their league form. BVB have, in recent years, knocked off the likes of Atletico Madrid and PSG in the knockout stage, plus wins over Newcastle (twice), AC Milan and Chelsea at various stages.
Yet this year feels different. Dortmund are a miserable eighth in the Bundesliga table and can’t seem to get anything going. They put Barcelona and Real Madrid to the test in the league phase but couldn’t come away with a result.
History isn’t written on paper. pic.twitter.com/frGaeyC4XI
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) April 9, 2025
1 hour 45 mins to kick: While Raphinha looks to revive his Ballon d’Or candidacy with a strong finish to the season, his teammate Lamine Yamal has been turning heads in the race himself.
While the young superstar has largely played second-fiddle to his Brazilian counterpart this season, he has hit a new gear in the last few months while Raphinha sags a bit. While the raw numbers don’t quite reflect his exceptional recent performances, Lamine Yamal has been borderline unplayable at times over the past few weeks.
He’s been at his best on the European stage where the lights are the brightest, scoring twice and assisting three more in the past five games, including in the wacky 3-2 win over Dortmund in the group stage. Could the 17-year-old really make a last-gasp push for the Ballon d’Or? Or is it a bit too late for such a big leap?
Lamine Yamal believes Barcelona can win the treble this year 👀🏆 pic.twitter.com/klvirULtve
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) April 9, 2025
2 hours to kickoff: Barcelona stars Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski have received plenty of attention in the 2025 Ballon d’Or race, but a player on the other side of the pitch will hope to announce his intentions as well.
There has been little noise around Borussia Dortmund striker Serhou Guirassy’s candidacy, but with 25 goals this season between Bundesliga and Champions League play, he should garner at least some peripheral chatter. His 10 UCL goals have him second only to the aforementioned Barcelona Brazilian in this year’s individual table.
If the 29-year-old Guinea international were to lead Dortmund to a shocking upset at this stage, his stock would certainly rise in that regard.
Serhou Guirassy has scored 43 goals since start of last Bundesliga season.
Only Harry Kane (59) has scored more. pic.twitter.com/t07mNYJp5n
— StatMuse FC (@statmusefc) April 5, 2025
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund kick off time
This Champions League quarterfinal first leg kicks off from Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium on Wednesday, April 9 at 9 p.m. local time in Barcelona, Spain. Here’s how that time translates across some of the major territories around the globe:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| USA/Canada | Wed, Apr. 9 | 3 p.m. ET |
| USA/Canada | Wed, Apr. 9 | 12 p.m. PT |
| UK | Wed, Apr. 9 | 8 p.m. BST |
| Australia | Thu, Apr. 10 | 7 a.m. AEST |
| India | Thu, Apr. 10 | 1:30 a.m. IST |
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund lineups, team news
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick stated over the weekend that they were being careful with the minutes load for Ballon d’Or candidate Raphinha of late. Having began on the bench in three of their four games since the international break, he should be well rested to start this enormous European match.
Barcelona are still without injured Dani Olmo and Marc Casado, while they are not expecting to bring Marc-Andre ter Stegen back in for European games despite his return to training from an early-season ACL injury.
Flick has made his decision in place of the injured Olmo, with Fermin Lopez chosen to man the No. 10 position over Gavi. Flick has also turned to Inigo Martinez over Eric Garcia at the back with Ronald Araujo struggling for form.
Barcelona starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Szczesny (GK) — Kounde, I. Martinez, Cubarsi, Balde — Pedri, de Jong — Raphinha, F. Lopez, Lamine Yamal — Lewandowski.
Barcelona subs: Pena (GK), Kochen (GK), Fort, Martin, Araujo, Christensen, E. Garcia, Torre, Gavi, Fati, F. Torres, Victor.
Borussia Dortmund are suffering under a defensive crisis. They are sweating the fitness of defender Niklas Sule who has struggled through an injury-stricken season. He missed the weekend’s league game with a bruise and can’t be counted on as a starter at the moment.
That leaves Dortmund thin at the back considering they are also without Nico Schlotterbeck and saw Ramy Bensebaini limp off with a thigh injury this weekend. It was expected that Daniel Svensson may have to move back to defence to accommomdate, but Bensebaini surprisingly passes fit for an immediate return to action.
BVB will be without Pascal Gross who is suspended for yellow card accumulation, while Marcel Sabitzer is sidelined with a knee injury and will miss at least most of the remaining matches this season, if not all.
Borussia Dortmund starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Kobel (GK) — Anton, Can, Bensebaini — Ryerson, Nmecha, Chukwuemeka, Gittens — Brandt — Guirassy, Adeyemi.
Borussia Dortmund subs: Meyer (GK), Lotka (GK), Kabar, Svensson, Sule, Couto, Reyna, Watjen, Ozcan, Duranville, Beier.
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund live stream, TV channel
Here is how to watch the match in some of the world’s major regions:
| Date | Time | TV channel | Streaming | |
| USA | Wed, Apr. 9 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | TUDN, Univision | Fubo USA, Paramount+ |
| Canada | Wed, Apr. 9 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | — | DAZN |
| UK | Wed, Apr. 9 | 8 p.m. BST | TNT Sports 2 | discovery+ |
| Australia | Thu, Apr. 10 | 7 a.m. AEST | — | Stan Sport |
