2026–27 UEFA Europa League league phase
International football club competition in Europe
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2026–27 UEFA Europa League league phase began on 16 September 2026 and will end on 28 January 2027. A total of 36 teams are competing in the league phase to decide the 24 places in the knockout phase of the 2026–27 UEFA Europa League.
Ararat-Armenia, Bournemouth, Celje, Crystal Palace, Jagiellonia Białystok, Lillestrøm, NEC, OFI, Sunderland and Torreense are making their debut appearances since the introduction of the group stage (although NEC had previously appeared in the UEFA Cup group stage). Ararat-Armenia, Bournemouth, Lillestrøm, OFI, Sunderland and Torreense are making their debut appearances in a major UEFA competition group or league phase, with Bournemouth and Torreense qualifying for European football for the first time in their history. Ararat-Armenia became the first team from Armenia to play in the Europa League group stage or league phase.
A total of 22 national associations are being represented in the league phase.
Format
Each team will play eight matches, four at home and four away, against eight different opponents, with all 36 teams ranked in a single league table (known as the Swiss system). Teams were separated into four pots based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients, and each team will play two teams from each of the four pots – one at home and one away. The top eight teams in the standings will receive a bye to the round of 16. The teams ranked from 9th to 24th will contest the knockout phase play-offs, with the teams ranked from 9th to 16th seeded for the draw. Teams ranked from 25th to 36th will be eliminated from European competition.
Tiebreakers
Teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If two or more teams are equal on points upon completion of the league phase, the following tiebreaking criteria will be applied, in the order given, to determine their rankings:[1]
While the league phase is in progress, teams are ranked according to criteria 1–5 only, and if still tied, will be given equal ranking and sorted alphabetically. Criteria 6–10 will only be used after the final matches take place.
- Goal difference;
- Goals scored;
- Away goals scored;
- Wins;
- Away wins;
- Higher number of points obtained collectively by league phase opponents;
- Superior collective goal difference of league phase opponents;
- Higher number of goals scored collectively by league phase opponents;
- Lower disciplinary points total (direct red card or expulsion for two yellow cards in one match = 3 points, yellow card = 1 point);
- UEFA club coefficient.
Teams and seeding
The 36 teams were divided into four pots of nine teams each, with teams allocated to pots based on their 2026 UEFA club coefficients. The participants include:
- 13 teams which entered at this stage
- 12 winners of the play-off round
- 7 losers of the Champions League play-off round (5 from the Champions Path, 2 from the League Path)
- 4 losers of the Champions League third qualifying round (League Path)
| Key to colours |
|---|
| Teams ranked 1 to 8 advance to the round of 16 as a seeded team |
| Teams ranked 9 to 16 advance to the knockout phase play-offs as a seeded team |
| Teams ranked 17 to 24 advance to the knockout phase play-offs as an unseeded team |
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Notes
- ECL Conference League title holders
- EL-PO Winners of play-off round
- CL-CH Losers of Champions League play-off round (Champions Path)
- CL-LP Losers of Champions League play-off round (League Path)
- CL-L3 Losers of Champions League third qualifying round (League Path)
Draw
The draw for the league phase pairings was held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on 28 August 2026, 13:00 CEST, along with the draw for the Conference League league phase.[2] The automated draw software instantly conducted the full digital draw at random, determining the home and away matches for all clubs. Each team faced two opponents from each of the four pots, one of which they faced at home and one away. Teams could not face opponents from their own association, and could only be drawn against a maximum of two sides from the same association. In addition, any individual fixture between two teams that had already been drawn in the last two seasons, could not be repeated for the third time with the same home team. The draw results were then be revealed pot-by-pot, starting with Pot 1, with the intention of "maintaining suspense and clarity for viewers".
League phase table
The top eight ranked teams receive a bye directly to the round of 16. Teams ranked from 9th to 24th contest the knockout phase play-offs, with teams ranked from 9th to 16th seeded for the draw, while those ranked from 17th to 24th are not. Teams ranked from 25th to 36th are eliminated from all competitions.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Juventus |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 3 | Advance to round of 16 (seeded) |
| 2 |  Crystal Palace |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 3 | |
| 3 |  Sparta Prague |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 3 | |
| 4 |  Beşiktaş |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 3 | |
| 5 |  Union Saint-Gilloise |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 3 | |
| 6 |  Ferencváros |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 3 | |
| 7 |  Benfica |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 3 | |
| 8 |  Bayer Leverkusen |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 3 | |
| 8 |  OFI |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 3 | Advance to knockout phase play-offs (seeded) |
| 10 | Bournemouth |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | |
| 10 |  Lyon |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | |
| 10 | Torreense |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | |
| 13 | Olympiacos |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | |
| 14 |  Red Bull Salzburg |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | |
| 15 |  Omonia |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | |
| 15 | Sunderland |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | |
| 17 |  Dinamo Zagreb |
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Advance to knockout phase play-offs (unseeded) |
| 17 |  Hapoel Be'er Sheva |
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 17 | Rennes |
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 17 | Sturm Graz |
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 21 |  Jagiellonia Białystok |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | |
| 22 | Anderlecht |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | |
| 22 |  Lillestrøm |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | |
| 22 |  Real Sociedad |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | |
| 25 |  AZ |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | |
| 25 | Celta Vigo |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | |
| 25 |  Levski Sofia |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | |
| 28 |  Celtic |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 0 | |
| 29 |  Celje |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 0 | |
| 29 | Milan |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 0 | |
| 29 | TSG Hoffenheim |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 0 | |
| 32 | Marseille |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | |
| 33 |  Ararat-Armenia |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | |
| 34 | Viktoria Plzeň |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 0 | |
| 35 | Lech Poznań |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0 | |
| 36 | NEC |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0 |
Rules for classification: League phase tiebreakers
Results summary
By matchday
By team
Scores and legend colours are listed from the perspective of the team in the "Team" column.
Legend: H = home, A = away. Green = win; Yellow = draw; Red = loss.
Matches
The fixture list was announced on 29 August 2026, the day after the draw.
Times are CET or CEST,[note 1] as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).
Matchday 1
| Ararat-Armenia | 1–4 | Sparta Prague |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[6] |
| Omonia | 1–0 | Celta Vigo |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[8] |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 0–0 | Dinamo Zagreb |
|---|---|---|
| Report[14] |
| Olympiacos | 2–1 | Jagiellonia Białystok |
|---|---|---|
| Report[17] |
|
| Sturm Graz | 0–0 | Rennes |
|---|---|---|
| Report[21] |
| Sunderland | 1–0 | AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Report[23] |
| OFI | 2–0 | TSG Hoffenheim |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[25] |
| Levski Sofia | 0–1 | Red Bull Salzburg |
|---|---|---|
| Report[27] |
|
| Celtic | 1–3 | Ferencváros |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[31] |
|
| Crystal Palace | 4–0 | Lech Poznań |
|---|---|---|
| Report[33] |
| Viktoria Plzeň | 0–3 | Union Saint-Gilloise |
|---|---|---|
| Report[35] |
|
| Juventus | 5–0 | NEC |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[37] |
| Real Sociedad | 1–2 | Bournemouth |
|---|---|---|
|
Report[41] |
Matchday 2
| Sparta Prague | v | Lillestrøm |
|---|---|---|
| Report[43] |
| AZ | v | Hapoel Be'er Sheva |
|---|---|---|
| Report[44] |
| Red Bull Salzburg | v | Milan |
|---|---|---|
| Report[45] |
| Lech Poznań | v | Bayer Leverkusen |
|---|---|---|
| Report[46] |
| Bournemouth | v | Sturm Graz |
|---|---|---|
| Report[53] |
| Dinamo Zagreb | v | Anderlecht |
|---|---|---|
| Report[55] |
| NEC | v | Levski Sofia |
|---|---|---|
| Report[57] |
| Marseille | v | Olympiacos |
|---|---|---|
| Report[58] |
| Celta Vigo | v | Juventus |
|---|---|---|
| Report[59] |
| TSG Hoffenheim | v | Beşiktaş |
|---|---|---|
| Report[62] |
Matchday 3
| Ferencváros | v | Torreense |
|---|---|---|
| Report[64] |
| Dinamo Zagreb | v | NEC |
|---|---|---|
| Report[65] |
| Lech Poznań | v | Sunderland |
|---|---|---|
| Report[67] |
| OFI | v | Bayer Leverkusen |
|---|---|---|
| Report[68] |
| Sturm Graz | v | Marseille |
|---|---|---|
| Report[72] |
| Bournemouth | v | Milan |
|---|---|---|
| Report[73] |
| Beşiktaş | v | Crystal Palace |
|---|---|---|
| Report[74] |
| Celtic | v | Celta Vigo |
|---|---|---|
| Report[75] |
| Viktoria Plzeň | v | Levski Sofia |
|---|---|---|
| Report[76] |
| Lillestrøm | v | Real Sociedad |
|---|---|---|
| Report[78] |
| Celje | v | Red Bull Salzburg |
|---|---|---|
| Report[79] |
| TSG Hoffenheim | v | Lyon |
|---|---|---|
| Report[82] |
Matchday 4
| Milan | v | Ferencváros |
|---|---|---|
| Report[83] |
| Sparta Prague | v | Bournemouth |
|---|---|---|
| Report[84] |
| Crystal Palace | v | TSG Hoffenheim |
|---|---|---|
| Report[85] |
| Lillestrøm | v | Viktoria Plzeň |
|---|---|---|
| Report[86] |
| Real Sociedad | v | Lyon |
|---|---|---|
| Report[89] |
| Rennes | v | Olympiacos |
|---|---|---|
| Report[91] |
| Bayer Leverkusen | v | Marseille |
|---|---|---|
| Report[93] |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | v | OFI |
|---|---|---|
| Report[95] |
| Celta Vigo | v | Union Saint-Gilloise |
|---|---|---|
| Report[96] |
| Sturm Graz | v | Celje |
|---|---|---|
| Report[98] |
| Benfica | v | Lech Poznań |
|---|---|---|
| Report[99] |
Matchday 5
| Viktoria Plzeň | v | Benfica |
|---|---|---|
| Report[103] |
| Olympiacos | v | Milan |
|---|---|---|
| Report[105] |
| Marseille | v | Levski Sofia |
|---|---|---|
| Report[106] |
| Celta Vigo | v | Bournemouth |
|---|---|---|
| Report[108] |
| Sparta Prague | v | AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Report[109] |
| Crystal Palace | v | Real Sociedad |
|---|---|---|
| Report[110] |
| Ferencváros | v | Celje |
|---|---|---|
| Report[111] |
| OFI | v | Anderlecht |
|---|---|---|
| Report[114] |
Matchday 6
| AZ | v | Sturm Graz |
|---|---|---|
| Report[119] |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | v | Juventus |
|---|---|---|
| Report[121] |
| Marseille | v | Celta Vigo |
|---|---|---|
| Report[123] |
| Rennes | v | Dinamo Zagreb |
|---|---|---|
| Report[126] |
| Milan | v | Sunderland |
|---|---|---|
| Report[127] |
| Bournemouth | v | Viktoria Plzeň |
|---|---|---|
| Report[128] |
| Bayer Leverkusen | v | Beşiktaş |
|---|---|---|
| Report[129] |
| Lech Poznań | v | Ferencváros |
|---|---|---|
| Report[131] |
| Celje | v | Olympiacos |
|---|---|---|
| Report[132] |
| Real Sociedad | v | Torreense |
|---|---|---|
| Report[135] |
Matchday 7
| Ferencváros | v | Juventus |
|---|---|---|
| Report[139] |
| Lillestrøm | v | Bournemouth |
|---|---|---|
| Report[141] |
| Real Sociedad | v | Viktoria Plzeň |
|---|---|---|
| Report[144] |
| Sturm Graz | v | OFI |
|---|---|---|
| Report[145] |
| AZ | v | Dinamo Zagreb |
|---|---|---|
| Report[146] |
| Crystal Palace | v | Sparta Prague |
|---|---|---|
| Report[149] |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | v | Celta Vigo |
|---|---|---|
| Report[150] |
| Lech Poznań | v | Torreense |
|---|---|---|
| Report[151] |
Matchday 8
| Milan | v | Ararat-Armenia |
|---|---|---|
| Report[155] |
| Sparta Prague | v | Rennes |
|---|---|---|
| Report[156] |
| Dinamo Zagreb | v | Sturm Graz |
|---|---|---|
| Report[160] |
| Juventus | v | Real Sociedad |
|---|---|---|
| Report[161] |
| OFI | v | Lech Poznań |
|---|---|---|
| Report[163] |
| Marseille | v | Anderlecht |
|---|---|---|
| Report[164] |
| Celta Vigo | v | Lillestrøm |
|---|---|---|
| Report[168] |
Notes
- Ararat-Armenia will play their home matches at Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, Yerevan, instead of their regular stadium, Yerevan Football Academy Stadium, Yerevan, which does not meet UEFA requirements.
- Due to the Gaza war, Israeli teams are required to play their home matches at neutral venues until further notice.[15] Therefore, Hapoel Be'er Sheva will play their home matches at Rapid-Giulești Stadium, Bucharest, Romania, instead of their regular stadium, Turner Stadium, Beersheba.
- Levski Sofia will play their home matches at Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, instead of their regular stadium, Stadion Georgi Asparuhov, Sofia, which does not meet UEFA requirements.
- Union Saint-Gilloise will play their home matches at Den Dreef, Leuven, instead of their regular stadium, Joseph Marien Stadium, Brussels, which does not meet UEFA requirements.[50]
- Torreense will play their home matches at Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, Leiria, instead of their regular stadium, Estádio Manuel Marques, Torres Vedras, which does not meet UEFA requirements.[52]
- Union Saint-Gilloise had scheduled to play their home matches at Den Dreef, Leuven, instead of their regular stadium, Joseph Marien Stadium, Brussels, which does not meet UEFA requirements. However, the mayor of Leuven prohibited the match against Israeli team Hapoel Be'er Sheva due to safety concerns.[70] The match will now be played behind closed doors in Düsseldorf. [71]