Soccer on TV: Concacaf Champions League kicks off, UEFA Champions League quarterfinals

Tuesday, 3 p.m. (Univision, TUDN, Paramount+)

What a way to get the UEFA men’s Champions League quarterfinals started: the first meeting of these traditional powers since the 2018 final, and the first in a two-legged knockout series since 2009. In fact, it’s just the sixth all-time encounter between the clubs in European competition.

Neither team is having a vintage season in its domestic league, but both are currently in good form. Real is up to second in Spain’s La Liga; Liverpool is fresh off a 3-0 rout of Arsenal that set up a three-way tie for fifth place in England’s Premier League. The forward duel between Real’s Karim Benzema and Liverpool’s Mo Salah should be a treat to watch.

Of note: All of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal games are on Paramount+. None is on CBS Sports Network. The channel will resume carrying games in the semifinal round.

Tuesday, 3 p.m. (Galavisión, Paramount+)

All eyes will be on Dortmund star striker Erling Haaland in this matchup. His contract at Dortmund is starting to run down and the team might not qualify for the Champions League next season, so Europe’s giants are lining up big-money offers to buy him this summer. Man City has kept its cards hidden so far, but its interest is no secret — and it happens to be a former club of Erling’s father, Alfe Inge Haaland.

Tuesday, 6 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

The Concacaf Champions League’s round of 16 kicks off with Diego Valeri leading the Timbers down to Honduras. Marathón is led by Luis Garrido, who used to play for the Houston Dynamo and Spain’s Córdoba.

Tuesday, 8 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

New Atlanta manager Gabriel Heinze gets quite a baptism for his first game in charge: a trip to a Costa Rican power that’s currently on a 25-game unbeaten run across all competitions. Ezequiel Barco has got to step up and play like the big-money star he is, and a young back line with major American prospects Miles Robinson, Brooks Lennon and George Bello will have its hands full.

Alajuense’s attack includes familiar names Johan Venegas, who played for Montreal and Minnesota, and national team veteran Bryan Ruiz.

» READ MORE: A year after winning their first trophy, are the Union good enough for an encore?

Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. (beIN Sports, beIN Sports Español)

South America’s equivalent of the Champions League, the Copa Libertadores, also has big games this week in its third round. San Lorenzo is one of Argentina’s traditional powers (and Pope Francis’ lifelong favorite team), with a squad including former Timbers striker Lucas Melano and Paraguayan veteran Óscar Romero. Santos, the former club of Pelé and Neymar, has a new young phenom in forward Kaio Jorge. He’s been scouted by Chelsea, Juventus and Bayer Leverkusen.

Tuesday, 10 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

The CCL’s biggest underdog is Arcahaie, a Haitian club that’s facing one of Mexico’s superpowers. On top of the David-vs.-Goliath matchup, Arachaie can’t play at home because of the pandemic, so the game is in the Dominican Republic. DraftKings’ odds have Arcahaie at a whopping +1100, with Cruz Azul -875 — the round of 16′s biggest favorite. Cruz Azul, led by forward Jonathan Rodríguez and winger Orbelín Pineda, is looking for its first Concacaf crown since 2014.

Wednesday, 3 p.m. (UniMás, TUDN, Paramount+)

The teams that played last season’s Champions League final meet in this season’s quarters, and they do so at a fascinating time. Bayern is a strong favorite to repeat, but must do so without injured star striker Robert Lewandowski. PSG has stars Kylian Mbappé and Neymar, but key midfielder Marco Verratti is out with COVID-19 — and the club fell out of first place in Ligue 1 on Saturday with a loss to new leader Lille.

Wednesday, 3 p.m. (Galavisión, Paramount+)

A penny for the thoughts of José Mourninho as the team where he won his first European Cup as a manager hosts the team that made him a global star in the Champions League quarterfinals. And another penny for the thoughts of Christian Pulisic, who scored against West Brom on Saturday then suffered a hamstring injury during a halftime workout.

Wednesday, 8 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

After the Union and Saprissa get Wednesday’s CCL tripleheader started, the scene shifts to Mexico. León won last season’s Liga MX Apertura title, and has a striker with whom Toronto’s Michael Bradley, Omar González and Jozy Altidore will be plenty familiar: Costa Rican veteran Joel Campbell.

» READ MORE: An analysis of the Union’s roster at the start of the 2021 season

Wednesday, 10 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

This is the first time that Honduras’ biggest club meets Mexico’s biggest club in the Champions League. Olimipia’s veteran forward Jerry Bengtson will look to show that he’s still got it against an América squad featuring forward Henry Martín and playmaker Giovani dos Santos.

Thursday, 3 p.m. (UniMás, Paramount+)

If you’re a United fan who doesn’t know much about Granada, you’d better do your homework before this Europa League’s quarterfinal starts. The club knocked Napoli out of the League’s round of 32; then knocked out Molde, a Norwegian club that had that bounced Germany’s Hoffenheim. Its leaders include veteran Spanish forward Roberto Soldado and former New York City FC midfielder Yangel Herrera.

The other quarterfinal series, which also begin Thursday, are Ajax vs. Roma, Arsenal vs. Sparta Prague, and Dinamo Zagreb vs. Villarreal.

» READ MORE: This week's Europa League schedule

Thursday, 8 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

The Crew, last year’s MLS Cup champions, begin their CCL campaign in Nicaragua. This should be a winnable series for a team that played some of the league’s highest-quality soccer last year, led by midfielders Darlington Nagbe and Lucas Zelarayán.

Thursday, 10 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

Monterrey has won the Champions League four times, most recently in 2019, and is a favorite to win it again this year. Forward Rogelio Funes Mori is a perennial scorer, and winger Miguel Layún brings vast big game experience in Europe and with Mexico’s national team. Pantoja, of the Dominican Republic, is in the CCL for the second time in its history.

» READ MORE: Concacaf plans to launch a women’s soccer Champions League after the 2023 World Cup