UEFA Champions League, Europe 2026 – 2027
Source: https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague
The qualifying phase for the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League runs from July 7 to August 26, 2026. A total of 52 teams compete across the qualifying rounds and play-offs – 42 via the Champions Path and 10 via the League Path – for the final 7 spots in the expanded 36-team league phase.
📅 2026/27 Qualifying Schedule
| Phase / Round | Draw Date | First Leg | Second Leg | Status |
| First Qualifying Round | 16 June 2026 | 7–8 July 2026 | 14–15 July 2026 | Completed |
| Second Qualifying Round | 17 June 2026 | 21–22 July 2026 | 28–29 July 2026 | In Progress |
| Third Qualifying Round | 20 July 2026 | 4–5 August 2026 | 11 August 2026 | Upcoming |
| Play-Off Round | 3 August 2026 | 18–19 August 2026 | 25–26 August 2026 | Upcoming |
⚽ Structure & Path Overview
🏆 Champions Path (5 League Phase Slots)
- First Qualifying Round: 28 domestic champions from lower-ranked associations.
- Second Qualifying Round: 24 teams (14 first-round winners + 10 direct entrants).
- Third Qualifying Round: 12 second-round winners.
- Play-Off Round: 10 teams (6 third-round winners + 4 direct entrants, including Celtic, AEK Athens, Viking, and LASK).
- Winners: 5 teams advance to the UEFA Champions League Phase.
🥈 League Path (2 League Phase Slots)
- Second Qualifying Round: 4 league runner-up teams (Fenerbahçe, Sturm Graz, Hearts, Górnik Zabrze).
- Third Qualifying Round: 8 teams (2 second-round winners + 6 direct entrants: Lyon, Bodø/Glimt, Olympiacos, Union SG, Sparta Praha, N.E.C.).
- Play-Off Round: 4 third-round winners.
- Winners: 2 teams advance to the UEFA Champions League Phase.
📌 Next Key Dates
- 21–22 July & 28–29 July 2026: Second Qualifying Round 1st & 2nd Legs
- 3 August 2026: Play-Off Round Draw
- 27 August 2026: UEFA Champions League Phase Draw (Nyon)
Results UEFA Champions League Qualifying Phase
First Legs
Tuesday 7 July
| Home Team | Score | Away Team |
| 🇦🇿 Sabah | 2–0 | The New Saints 🏴 |
| 🇬🇮 Lincoln Red Imps | 3–1 | Inter Escaldes 🇦🇩 |
| 🇦🇲 Ararat-Armenia | 2–0 | Riga 🇱🇻 |
| 🇱🇹 Kauno Žalgiris | 1–1 | Drita 🇽🇰 |
| 🇲🇰 Vardar | 0–2 | KuPS Kuopio 🇫🇮 |
| 🇲🇹 Floriana | 2–0 | Shamrock Rovers 🇮🇪 |
| 🇸🇲 Tre Fiori | 0–1 | Larne 🇬🇧 |
| 🇧🇦 Borac | 1–1 | Levski Sofia 🇧🇬 |
| 🇫🇴 Klaksvík | 2–1 | Atert Bissen 🇱🇺 |
| 🇮🇸 Víkingur Reykjavík | 1–0 | Győri ETO 🇭🇺 |
Wednesday 8 July
| Home Team | Score | Away Team |
| 🇰🇿 Kairat Almaty | 2–1 | Sutjeska 🇲🇪 |
| 🇪🇪 Flora Tallinn | 2–3 | Iberia Tbilisi 🇬🇪 |
| 🇧🇾 Vitebsk | 1–4 | Universitatea Craiova 🇷🇴 |
| 🇲🇩 Petrocub | 1–1 | Egnatia 🇦🇱 |
Second Legs
Tuesday 14 July
| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Aggregate |
| 🇫🇮 KuPS Kuopio | 2–3 (a.e.t.) | Vardar 🇲🇰 | 4–3 |
| 🇬🇪 Iberia Tbilisi | 2–2 | Flora Tallinn 🇪🇪 | 5–4 |
| 🇦🇩 Inter Escaldes | 1–1 | Lincoln Red Imps 🇬🇮 | 2–4 |
| 🇱🇻 Riga | 3–2 | Ararat-Armenia 🇦🇲 | 3–4 |
| 🇭🇺 Győri ETO | 2–2 | Víkingur Reykjavík 🇮🇸 | 2–3 |
| 🏴 The New Saints | 1–2 | Sabah 🇦🇿 | 1–4 |
| 🇧🇬 Levski Sofia | 4–0 | Borac 🇧🇦 | 5–1 |
| 🇽🇰 Drita | 2–3 | Kauno Žalgiris 🇱🇹 | 3–4 |
| 🇮🇪 Shamrock Rovers | 5–1 | Floriana 🇲🇹 | 5–3 |
| 🇬🇧 Larne | 2–1 | Tre Fiori 🇸🇲 | 3–1 |
Wednesday 15 July
| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Aggregate |
| 🇷🇴 Universitatea Craiova | 1–0 | Vitebsk 🇧🇾 | 5–1 |
| 🇱🇺 Atert Bissen | 1–2 | Klaksvík 🇫🇴 | 2–4 |
| 🇦🇱 Egnatia | 6–1 | Petrocub 🇲🇩 | 7–2 |
| 🇲🇪 Sutjeska | 0–2 | Kairat Almaty 🇰🇿 | 1–4 |
UEFA Champions League Second Qualifying Round
Here is the schedule and matchups for the UEFA Champions League Second Qualifying Round (First Legs: 21/22 July, Second Legs: 28/29 July):
Champions Path & League Path Fixtures
| Home Team (1st Leg) | Away Team (1st Leg) |
| 🇦🇲 Ararat-Armenia | Shamrock Rovers 🇮🇪 |
| 🇬🇪 Iberia Tbilisi | Slovan Bratislava 🇸🇰 |
| 🇸🇪 Mjällby | Lincoln Red Imps 🇬🇮 |
| 🇦🇿 Sabah | KuPS Kuopio 🇫🇮 |
| 🇩🇰 Aarhus | Lech Poznań 🇵🇱 |
| 🇨🇭 Thun | Dinamo Zagreb 🇭🇷 |
| 🇫🇴 Klaksvík | Kauno Žalgiris 🇱🇹 |
| 🇬🇧 Larne | Red Star Belgrade 🇷🇸 |
| 🇮🇸 Víkingur Reykjavík | Hapoel Beer-Sheva 🇮🇱 |
| 🇨🇾 Omonia Nicosia | Kairat Almaty 🇰🇿 |
| 🇧🇬 Levski Sofia | Universitatea Craiova 🇷🇴 |
| 🇦🇱 Egnatia | Celje 🇸🇮 |
| 🇦🇹 Sturm Graz | Hearts 🏴 |
| 🇹🇷 Fenerbahçe | Górnik Zabrze 🇵🇱 |
The 2026/27 UEFA Champions League Second Qualifying Round first legs took place on July 21–22, 2026.
Here are the results from the 1st Leg matches:
First Leg Results
| Home Team | Score | Away Team |
| FC Iberia 1999 | 0 – 2 | ŠK Slovan Bratislava |
| Mjällby AIF | 3 – 0 | Lincoln Red Imps |
| Sabah FK | 1 – 0 | KuPS (Kuopion PS) |
| FC Ararat-Armenia | 2 – 0 | Shamrock Rovers |
| Aarhus GF | 1 – 4 | Lech Poznań |
| FC Thun | 1 – 1 | Dinamo Zagreb |
| Fenerbahçe | 1 – 0 | Górnik Zabrze |
| SK Sturm Graz | 4 – 0 | Heart of Midlothian |
| KÍ Klaksvík | 0 – 0 | FK Kauno Žalgiris |
| Larne FC | 0 – 4 | Red Star Belgrade |
| Víkingur Reykjavík | 2 – 1 | Hapoel Be’er Sheva |
| Omonia Nicosia | 1 – 0 | FK Kairat Almaty |
| Levski Sofia | 1 – 0 | CS Universitatea Craiova |
| KS Egnatia | 3 – 3 | NK Celje |
The second leg of the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League Second Qualifying Round took place on July 28–29, 2026, determining which teams advanced to the third qualifying round.
Here are the key aggregate results and scores from the second-leg matches played over those two days:
🏆 Champions Path
- GNK Dinamo (CRO) 3–2 (a.e.t.) Thun (SUI)
- 1st Leg: 1–1 | Aggregate: 4–3 (Dinamo Zagreb advance)
- NK Celje (SVN) 2–2 (a.e.t., 4–1 pen.) Egnatia (ALB)
- 1st Leg: 3–3 | Aggregate: 5–5 (Celje advance on penalties)
- Sabah (AZE) 2–0 KuPS Kuopio (FIN)
- 1st Leg: 1–0 | Aggregate: 3–0 (Sabah advance)
- Lincoln Red Imps (GIB) 0–0 Mjällby AIF (SWE)
- 1st Leg: 0–3 | Aggregate: 0–3 (Mjällby advance)
- Shamrock Rovers (IRL) 2–1 Ararat-Armenia (ARM)
- 1st Leg: 0–2 | Aggregate: 2–3 (Ararat-Armenia advance)
- Kairat Almaty (KAZ) 1–0 Omonia (CYP)
- 1st Leg: 0–1 | Aggregate: 1–1 (Kairat advance on penalties)
- Kauno Žalgiris (LTU) 1–0 Klaksvík (FRO)
- 1st Leg: 0–0 | Aggregate: 1–0 (Kauno Žalgiris advance)
⚽ League Path
- Hearts (SCO) 0–2 Sturm Graz (AUT)
- 1st Leg: 0–4 | Aggregate: 0–6 (Sturm Graz advance)
Note: Winners advance to the Third Qualifying Round (scheduled for August 4–5 and August 11, 2026), while eliminated sides drop down into the UEFA Europa League qualifying stages.
What’s Next?
- 3rd Qualifying Round: Winners on aggregate will advance to the Third Qualifying Round, while losing teams will transfer to the UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds.
Third Qualifying Round of the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League (1st leg on August 4–5, 2nd leg on August 11):
🏆 Champions Path
| Fixture | 1st Leg (Aug 4–5) | 2nd Leg (Aug 11) | Aggregate | Winner |
| Levski Sofia vs Kairat Almaty | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | Levski Sofia |
| Aarhus GF vs Sabah FK | 2–1 | 0–4 | 2–5 | Sabah FK |
| Dinamo Zagreb vs Kauno Žalgiris | 5–0 | 2–1 | 7–1 | Dinamo Zagreb |
| Hapoel Be’er Sheva vs Crvena Zvezda | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | Hapoel Be’er Sheva |
| Mjällby AIF vs Slovan Bratislava | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–4 | Slovan Bratislava |
| FC Ararat-Armenia vs NK Celje | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | NK Celje |
⚽ League Path
| Fixture | 1st Leg (Aug 4–5) | 2nd Leg (Aug 11) | Aggregate | Winner |
| Union SG vs FK Bodø/Glimt | 3–3 | 2–3 (AET) | 5–6 | FK Bodø/Glimt |
| Olympiacos vs NEC Nijmegen | 0–0 | 1–2 (AET) | 1–2 | NEC Nijmegen |
| Fenerbahçe vs Sturm Graz | 2–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | Fenerbahçe |
| Sparta Praha vs Olympique Lyon | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–4 | Olympique Lyon |
Note: Winners advance to the Play-off Round, the final stage before the Champions League phase draw.
