Champions League Playoff Draw and Full Schedule for 2026/27 UEFA Qualifying

2026/27 UEFA Champions League Playoff Draw

The final round of qualification for the next season's UEFA Champions League is underway. Fourteen clubs face off in playoffs to secure their spots in the league phase of the 2026/27 tournament. The last places will be decided by the third qualifying round, with two-legged matches scheduled in August before the main draw on August 27.

Playoff Draw Details

The playoff draw took place on August 3 at UEFA's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. Fourteen teams entered this stage: ten via the champions path and four through the league path. The champions path includes teams that won their domestic leagues, while the league path features clubs that qualified through their domestic league rankings from nations with multiple Champions League slots.

Ten of these playoff teams are still unknown and will be determined by third-round qualifying matches held the weeks of August 3 and August 10.

Matchups for the Playoffs

• Levski Sofia (BUL) or Kairat Almaty (KAZ) vs. AEK Athens (GRE)
• Celtic (SCO) vs. LASK (AUT)
• GNK Dinamo (CRO) or Zalgiris (LIT) vs. Viking (NOR)
• Mjallby (SWE) or Slovan Bratislava (SVK) vs. Ararat-Armenia (ARM) or Celje (SVN)
• Hapoel Be'er-Sheva (ISR) or Red Star Belgrade (SRB) vs. Aarhus (DEN) or Sabah (AZE)
• Fenerbahce (TUR) or Sturm Graz (AUT) vs. Sparta Prague (CZE) or Lyon (FRA)
• Olympiacos (GRE) or NEC (NED) vs. Union SG (BEL) or Bodo/Glimt (NOR)

Schedule of Playoff Matches

• First legs: August 18 and 19
• Second legs: August 25 and 26
• League-phase draw: August 27 in Monaco, starting at 12 p.m. CET (6 a.m. ET)

Europa League Qualification

Teams losing in this playoff round will automatically enter the Europa League league phase. This is the final chance for any team to move into the Europa League after Champions League qualifying. Once the Champions League group stage begins, teams eliminated will no longer drop into the Europa League.