2026–27 UEFA Conference League qualifying
Qualification phase of the 2026–27 UEFA Conference League
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The 2026–27 UEFA Conference League qualifying phase and play-off round began on 7 July and will end on 27 August 2026.[1][2]
A total of 153 teams compete in the qualifying system of the 2026–27 UEFA Conference League, which consists of the qualifying phase and the play-off round. Of these, 20 teams enter through the Champions Path and 133 through the Main Path. The 24 winners of the play-off round advance to the league phase, where they join the 12 losers of the Europa League play-off round.[3][4]
Times are CEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).
Format
The qualifying phase and play-off round are split into two paths – the Champions Path and the Main Path. The Champions Path contains teams which were eliminated from the Champions League Champions Path and the Europa League Champions Path, and the Main Path contains teams which qualify through their domestic league or as domestic cup winners as well as teams eliminated from the Europa League Main Path.
Each tie is played over two legs, with each team playing one leg at home. The team that scores more goals on aggregate over the two legs advances to the next round. If the aggregate score is level at the end of normal time of the second leg, extra time is played, and if the same number of goals is scored by both teams during extra time, the tie is decided by a penalty shoot-out.[5]
In the draws for each round, teams are seeded based on their UEFA club coefficients at the beginning of the season, with the teams divided into seeded and unseeded pots containing the same number of teams. A seeded team is drawn against an unseeded team, with the order of legs in each tie decided by draw. As the identity of the winners of the previous round may not be known at the time of the draws, the seeding is carried out under the assumption that the team with the higher coefficient of an undecided tie advances to the subsequent round, which means if the team with the lower coefficient advances, it simply takes the seeding of its opponent.
Prior to the draws, UEFA can form "groups" in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee, purely for the convenience of the draw and not to resemble any real groupings in the sense of the competition. Teams from associations with political conflicts as decided by UEFA cannot be drawn into the same tie. After the draws, the order of legs of a tie can be reversed by UEFA due to scheduling or venue conflicts.
Schedule
The schedule of the competition is as follows. Matches are scheduled for Thursdays, though exceptionally could take place on Tuesdays or Wednesdays due to scheduling conflicts.[2]
| Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round | 16 June 2026 | 9 July 2026 | 16 July 2026 |
| Second qualifying round | 17 June 2026 | 23 July 2026 | 30 July 2026 |
| Third qualifying round | 20 July 2026 | 6 August 2026 | 13 August 2026 |
| Play-off round | 3 August 2026 | 20 August 2026 | 27 August 2026 |
Teams
Champions Path
The Champions Path includes league champions which were eliminated from the Champions Path qualifying phase of the Champions League and the Champions Path qualifying phase of the Europa League and consists of the following rounds:
- Second qualifying round (12 teams): 12 of the 14 losers of the Champions League first qualifying round (two of the teams receive a bye to the third qualifying round).
- Third qualifying round (8 teams): 6 winners of the second qualifying round, and 2 losers of the Champions League first qualifying round that receive a bye.
- Play-off round (10 teams): 4 winners of the third qualifying round, and 6 losers of the Europa League Champions Path third qualifying round.
Below are the participating teams of the Champions Path (with their 2026 UEFA club coefficients, not used as seeding for the Champions Path, however),[6] grouped by their starting rounds.
| Key to colours |
|---|
| Winners of play-off round advance to league phase |
| Teams eliminated |
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- Notes
- UEL CH Q3 Losers of Europa League third qualifying round (Champions Path).
- UCL Q1 Losers of Champions League first qualifying round.
Main Path
The Main Path includes league non-champions and domestic cup winners and consists of the following rounds:
- First qualifying round (52 teams): 52 teams which enter in this round.
- Second qualifying round (86 teams): 54 teams which enter in this round, 6 losers of the Europa League Main Path first qualifying round, and 26 winners of the first qualifying round.
- Third qualifying round (52 teams): 9 losers of the Europa League Main Path second qualifying round, and 43 winners of the second qualifying round.
- Play-off round (38 teams): 5 teams which enter this round, 7 losers of the Europa League Main Path third qualifying round, and 26 winners of the third qualifying round.
Below are the participating teams of the League Path (with their 2026 UEFA club coefficients),[6] grouped by their starting rounds.
| Key to colours |
|---|
| Winners of play-off round advance to league phase |
| Teams eliminated |
- Notes
- UEL MP Q3 Losers of Europa League third qualifying round (Main Path).
- UEL MP Q2 Losers of Europa League second qualifying round (Main Path).
- UEL MP Q1 Losers of Europa League first qualifying round (Main Path).
First qualifying round
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 16 June 2026.[7]
Seeding
A total of 52 teams played in the first qualifying round. Seeding of the teams was based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients.[6] Before the draw, UEFA allocated the teams into five groups: four groups of five seeded teams and five unseeded teams, and one group of six seeded teams and six unseeded teams, in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. UEFA pre-assigned numbers to the teams so that the draw could be conducted in one run for the four groups consisting of five seeded and five unseeded teams each. The remaining group, consisting of six seeded and six unseeded teams, was drawn separately. The team represented by the ball drawn first was designated as the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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| Group 4 | Group 5 | ||||
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | ||
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Summary
The first legs were played on 7, 8 and 9 July, and the second legs were played on 14, 15 and 16 July 2026.
The winners of the ties advanced to the second qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Velež Mostar  | 2–1 |  Milsami Orhei | 1–1 | 1–0 |
Bohemians  | 2–0 |  St Joseph's | 2–0 | 0–0 |
Dinamo City  | 4–2 |  Astana | 0–1 | 4–1 (a.e.t.) |
Connah's Quay Nomads  | 2–3 |  Ballkani | 0–0 | 2–3 |
Zira  | 6–0 |  Torpedo Kutaisi | 3–0 | 3–0 |
Differdange 03  | 1–3 |  Ilves | 0–0 | 1–3 |
Dinamo Minsk  | 1–1 (6–5 p) |  Sileks | 0–1 | 1–0 (a.e.t.) |
Liepāja  | 3–1[a] |  Dečić | 1–0 | 2–1 |
| Elbasani | 1–1 (4–5 p) | BATE Borisov | 1–1 | 0–0 (a.e.t.) |
Glentoran  | 1–4 | RFS | 1–2 | 0–2 |
Atlètic Club d'Escaldes  | 4–2[a] | Mornar | 2–1 | 2–1 |
| Mondorf-les-Bains | 2–3 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 1–2 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Petrovac | 2–5 |  Žalgiris | 1–3 | 1–2 |
| Caernarfon Town | 0–10 |  FCI Levadia | 0–5 | 0–5 |
Marsaxlokk  | 0–4 |  Pyunik | 0–3 | 0–1 |
| Hegelmann | 1–4 | Paide Linnameeskond | 1–1 | 0–3 |
| Alashkert | 3–3 (6–5 p) | Yelimay | 1–1 | 2–2 (a.e.t.) |
Stjarnan  | 5–3[a] |  Víkingur | 3–1 | 2–2 |
| Dila Gori | 3–2 |  Virtus | 3–1 | 0–1 |
| Sarajevo | 2–3 | Inter Turku | 1–1 | 1–2 |
| Europa | 0–6 | Shkëndija | 0–5 | 0–1 |
| Nõmme Kalju | 3–2 | Linfield | 1–0 | 2–2 |
| Penybont | 0–4 | FC Santa Coloma | 0–1 | 0–3 |
| NSÍ | 3–2 | Hamrun Spartans | 1–1 | 2–1 |
| UNA Strassen | 3–0 | La Fiorita | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| Vllaznia | 2–6 | Malisheva | 2–1 | 0–5 |
- Order of legs reversed after original draw.
Matches
Second qualifying round
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 17 June 2026.[8]
Seeding
A total of 98 teams play in the second qualifying round: 12 in the Champions Path and 86 in the Main Path. Seeding of the teams was based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients.[6] For the winners of the first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked remaining team in each tie was used. For the losers of the Champions League first qualifying round and the Europa League first qualifying round, the club coefficient of the lower-ranked team in each tie was used. Before the draw, UEFA divided the teams and/or pairings into groups in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. In the Champions Path, the 12 pairings were divided into two groups, each containing three seeded and three unseeded pairings. In the Main Path, the 86 teams and/or pairings were divided into nine groups: seven groups of ten and two groups of eight, each with an equal number of seeded and unseeded teams and/or pairings. For the Main Path draw, the entries in each group were randomly assigned numbers so that the draw could be conducted in two runs: one for Groups 1 to 7, in which seeded entries were assigned numbers 1 to 5 and unseeded entries numbers 6 to 10, and one for Groups 8 and 9, in which seeded entries were assigned numbers 1 to 4 and unseeded entries numbers 5 to 8. The team or pairing represented by the ball drawn first was designated as the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | |||
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| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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| Group 4 | Group 5 | Group 6 | |||
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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| Group 7 | Group 8 | Group 9 | |||
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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- Notes
- † Losers of the Champions League first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics lost to a team with a lower coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
- †† Winners of the first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
- ††† Losers of the Europa League first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics lost to a team with a lower coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
- ‡ Following the exclusion of Karviná from UEFA Europa League and the subsequent adjustment of the Czech clubs' access places, Hradec Králové was moved to the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round and was replaced by Jablonec. Jablonec therefore effectively inherited the seeded status associated with Hradec Králové's place in the draw.
Summary
The first legs were played on 21, 22 and 23 July, and the second legs will be played on 28, 29 and 30 July 2026.
The winners of the ties advance to the third qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Tre Fiori | Bye | N/A | — | — |
| Inter Club d'Escaldes | Bye | N/A | — | — |
| Borac Banja Luka | Match 1 | Petrocub Hîncești | 3–0 | 30 Jul |
| Atert Bissen | Match 2 |  ETO Győr | 2–6 | 30 Jul |
| ML Vitebsk | Match 3 | Sutjeska | 3–0 | 30 Jul |
| Flora | Match 4 | The New Saints | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
| Floriana | Match 5 | Drita | 1–1 | 28 Jul |
| Vardar | Match 6 | Riga | 2–3 | 28 Jul |
| Main Path | ||||
Rijeka  | Match 1 | Derry City | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
İstanbul Başakşehir  | Match 2 | Inter Turku | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
Lugano  | Match 3 | Dukagjini | 1–0 | 29 Jul |
| HJK | Match 4 | Coleraine | 5–0 | 30 Jul |
FCSB  | Match 5 | Auda | 2–3 | 30 Jul |
| RFS | Match 6 | Vestri | 4–1 | 30 Jul |
Raków Częstochowa  | Match 7 | Valletta | 3–1 | 30 Jul |
| Liepāja | Match 8 |  Austria Wien | 0–2 | 30 Jul |
| Debrecen | Match 9 | Pyunik | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
GAIS  | Match 10 |  Nordsjælland | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
| IFK Göteborg | Match 11 | FCI Levadia | 1–2 | 30 Jul |
Žilina  | Match 12 | GKS Katowice | 2–1 | 30 Jul |
| Varaždin | Match 13 |  Jablonec | 3–2 | 30 Jul |
| Dila Gori | Match 14 |  Apollon Limassol | 0–4 | 28 Jul |
Bravo  | Match 15 | Shkëndija | 2–1 | 30 Jul |
| Universitatea Cluj | Match 16 |  Brann | 2–2 | 30 Jul |
| Shelbourne | Match 17 | Nõmme Kalju | 5–2 | 30 Jul |
| Valur | Match 18 | Zrinjski Mostar | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
| Zimbru Chișinău | Match 19 | Noah | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
| Dinamo Tbilisi | Match 20 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | 30 Jul |
| Aluminij | Match 21 | Dinamo City | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
| DAC Dunajská Streda | Match 22 | Velež Mostar | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
| BATE Borisov | Match 23 | Sion | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
| Stjarnan | Match 24 | Ilves | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
Motherwell  | Match 25 | HB | 2–0 | 30 Jul |
| Panevėžys | Match 26 | Tobol | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
| Malisheva | Match 27 | Hibernian | 2–0 | 30 Jul |
| Neftçi | Match 28 | Dinamo Minsk | 2–4 | 30 Jul |
| Paks | Match 29 |  Panathinaikos | 1–2 | 30 Jul |
Železničar Pančevo  | Match 30 |  Braga | 0–1 | 30 Jul |
| Vojvodina | Match 31 |  Ajax | 1–4 | 30 Jul |
Polissya Zhytomyr  | Match 32 | Copenhagen | 3–3 | 29 Jul |
| LNZ Cherkasy | Match 33 |  Gent | 0–0 | 30 Jul |
| FC Santa Coloma | Match 34 | Rapid Wien | 1–3 | 29 Jul |
Hapoel Tel Aviv  | Match 35 |  Ludogorets Razgrad | 2–0 | 30 Jul |
| Alashkert | Match 36 | CFR Cluj | 1–1 | 30 Jul |
| Bohemians | Match 37 | Ballkani | 2–1 | 30 Jul |
| Paide Linnameeskond | Match 38 | Zira | 1–0 | 30 Jul |
Vaduz  | Match 39 | Atlètic Club d'Escaldes | 4–0 | 30 Jul |
| Spartak Trnava | Match 40 | CSKA 1948 | 0–0 | 28 Jul |
| NSÍ | Match 41 | Koper | 0–2 | 30 Jul |
| AEK Larnaca | Match 42 | Beitar Jerusalem | 0–1 | 30 Jul |
| Partizan | Match 43 | UNA Strassen | 4–0 | 30 Jul |
Matches
Third qualifying round
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 20 July 2026.[9]
Seeding
A total of 60 teams will play in the third qualifying round: eight in the Champions Path and 52 in the Main Path. Seeding of the teams was based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients.[6] For the winners of the second qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of the draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked team in each tie was used. For the losers of the Europa League second qualifying round, the club coefficient of the lower-ranked team in each tie was used. Before the draw, UEFA divided the teams and/or pairings into groups in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. In the Champions Path, the eight teams and/or pairings were divided into two groups of four, each containing two seeded and two unseeded entries. In the Main Path, the 52 teams and/or pairings were divided into six groups: four groups of eight and two groups of ten, each with an equal number of seeded and unseeded entries. For the Main Path draw, the entries in each group were randomly assigned numbers so that the draw could be conducted in two runs: one for Groups 1 to 4, in which seeded entries were assigned numbers 1 to 4 and unseeded entries numbers 5 to 8, and one for Groups 5 and 6, in which seeded entries were assigned numbers 1 to 5 and unseeded entries numbers 6 to 10. In each tie, the team or pairing represented by the ball drawn first was designated as the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
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| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | |||
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| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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| Group 4 | Group 5 | Group 6 | |||
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
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- Notes
- † Winners of the second qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
- †† Losers of the Europa League second qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics lost to a team with a lower coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
Summary
The first legs will be played on 6 August, and the second legs will be played on 13 August 2026.
The winners of the ties advance to the play-off round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Tre Fiori | Match 1 | Winner of match 5 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 1 | Match 2 | Winner of match 3 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 4 | Match 3 | Inter Club d'Escaldes | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 6 | Match 4 | Winner of match 2 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Main Path | ||||
| Winner of match 2 | Match 1 | Winner of match 39 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 20 | Match 2 | Loser of EL Q2 match 6 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 43 | Match 3 | Winner of match 26 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 29 | Match 4 | Winner of match 40 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 31 | Match 5 | Winner of match 17 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 5 | Match 6 | Winner of match 21 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 19 | Match 7 | Winner of match 23 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 30 | Match 8 | Winner of match 28 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 18 | Match 9 | Winner of match 10 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Loser of EL Q2 match 7 | Match 10 | Loser of EL Q2 match 8 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 35 | Match 11 | Winner of match 12 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 42 | Match 12 | Winner of match 8 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 36 | Match 13 | Loser of EL Q2 match 3 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Loser of EL Q2 match 9 | Match 14 | Loser of EL Q2 match 2 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 16 | Match 15 | Winner of match 14 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 3 | Match 16 | Winner of match 41 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 7 | Match 17 | Loser of EL Q2 match 1 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 4 | Match 18 | Winner of match 25 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 27 | Match 19 | Winner of match 15 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 11 | Match 20 | Winner of match 33 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 38 | Match 21 | Winner of match 34 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 37 | Match 22 | Loser of EL Q2 match 5 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 9 | Match 23 | Winner of match 32 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 13 | Match 24 | Winner of match 6 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Winner of match 1 | Match 25 | Winner of match 24 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
| Loser of EL Q2 match 4 | Match 26 | Winner of match 22 | 6 Aug | 13 Aug |
Matches
Play-off round
The draw for the play-off round will be held on 3 August 2026.
Seeding
A total of 48 teams will play in the play-off round. Seeding of the teams will be based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients.[6] Before the draw, UEFA may form groups of seeded and unseeded teams per the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. The first team drawn in each tie will be the home team for the first leg.
| To be confirmed |
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| Seeded | To be confirmed | Unseeded |
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