The draw for the Copa del Rey Round of 16 paired the four teams competing in the Spanish Super Cup with opponents from the Second Division, playing the tie away from home. This round remains a single-match elimination until the semi-finals, increasing the pressure on the top clubs.
The most notable tie is the one pitting the First Division leader, FC Barcelona, against the Segunda A leader, Racing de Santander. The Catalan giants will travel to the El Sardinero stadium to try to eliminate the Cantabrian team, which has not been in the top flight since the 2011-12 season.
Regarding the other major teams, Atlético de Madrid will travel to Galicia to play against Deportivo de la Coruña, a historic club that has not played in the First Division since the 2017-18 season. Athletic Club will face Cultural Leonesa. Direct clashes between First Division teams were also drawn, such as the one that will take Elche to La Cartuja to face Betis, or Real Sociedad against Osasuna.
All matches in this round will be played next week, between Tuesday, January 13, Wednesday, January 14, and Thursday, January 15. An important novelty is that the video arbitration system, VAR, will be incorporated starting from these Round of 16 matches.




