2026–27 UEFA Champions League
Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid will host the final | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | Qualifying: 7 July – 26 August 2026 Competition proper: 8 September 2026 – 5 June 2027 |
| Teams | Competition proper: 36 Total: 81 (from 53 associations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 18 |
| Goals scored | 69 (3.83 per match) |
| Attendance | 846,316 (47,018 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Ermedin Demirović (VfB Stuttgart) Ferran Torres (Paris Saint-Germain) 3 goals each |
← 2025–26 2027–28 →
All statistics correct as of 10 September 2026. | |
The 2026–27 UEFA Champions League is the 72nd season of Europe's premier football tournament organised by UEFA and the 35th season since it was rebranded from the European Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
The final will be held on 5 June 2027 at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid, Spain.[1] It will be the second time the Metropolitano Stadium has hosted the UEFA Champions League final after 2019. The winners of the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League will automatically qualify for the 2027–28 UEFA Champions League league phase, the 2027 FIFA Intercontinental Cup final, the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup group stage and earn the right to play against the winners of the 2026–27 UEFA Europa League in the 2027 UEFA Super Cup.
Paris Saint-Germain are the two-time defending champions.
Association team allocation
[edit]A total of 81 teams from 53 of the 55 UEFA member associations are participating in the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League (the exceptions being Liechtenstein which did not organise a domestic league and Russia which is currently suspended). The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[2]
- Associations 1–5 each have four teams.
- Association 6 has three teams.
- Associations 7–15 each have two teams.
- Associations 16–55 (except Russia[Note RUS] and Liechtenstein[Note LIE]) each have one team.
- The winners of the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League and 2025–26 UEFA Europa League were each given an additional entry if they did not qualify for the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League through their domestic league.
- The two associations with the best coefficients in the 2025–26 season each have one European Performance Spot into the league phase. The winners of the UEFA Champions League and Europa League could not fill the European Performance Spots.
Association ranking
[edit]For the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League, the associations were allocated places according to their 2025 UEFA association coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2020–21 to 2024–25.[3] The table reflects Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA.
Apart from the allocation based on the association coefficients, associations could have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:
- (EPS) – European Performance Spot, the additional berths for associations who finished in the top 2 of the 2025–26 association coefficients
- (TH) – Additional berth for UEFA Champions League title holders
- (EL) – Additional berth for UEFA Europa League title holders
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Distribution
[edit]| Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from the previous round | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round (28 teams) |
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| Second qualifying round (28 teams) |
Champions Path (24 teams) |
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| League Path (4 teams) |
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| Third qualifying round (20 teams) |
Champions Path (12 teams) |
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| League Path (8 teams) |
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| Play-off round (14 teams) |
Champions Path (10 teams) |
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| League Path (4 teams) |
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| League phase (36 teams) |
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| Knockout phase play-offs (16 teams) |
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| Round of 16 (16 teams) |
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The information here reflects the continued suspension of Russia from European football, and so the following changes to the default access list have been made:
- The champions of association 23 (Ukraine) entered the second qualifying round (Champions Path) instead of the first qualifying round.
As the Champions League title holders (Paris Saint-Germain) qualified via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:
- Shakhtar Donetsk as the domestic champions with the highest club coefficient among the clubs that would otherwise have entered the Champions Path of the qualifying phase or play-off round, entered the league phase instead of the Champions Path second qualifying round.[4]
- Slovan Bratislava and Celje, as the two clubs with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the Champions Path first qualifying round, entered the Champions Path second qualifying round.
As the Europa League title holders (Aston Villa) qualified via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:
- Sporting CP, as the club with the highest club coefficient among all clubs that would otherwise have entered either the Champions Path or the League Path of the qualifying phase or play-off round, entered the league phase instead of the League Path third qualifying round.[5]
- Bodø/Glimt and Olympiacos, as the two clubs with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the League Path second qualifying round, entered the League Path third qualifying round.
Teams
[edit]The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
- TH: Champions League title holders
- EL: Europa League title holders
- 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.: League positions of the previous season
- EPS: European Performance Spots – the additional berths given to clubs from the two associations with the highest coefficient points in 2025–26
The label of European Performance Spots and title holders already qualified via league position are superscripted.
The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round are divided into Champions Path (CH) and League Path (LP).
- ^ Liechtenstein (LIE): The seven teams affiliated with the Liechtenstein Football Association (LFV) all play in the Swiss football league system. The only competition organised by the LFV is the Liechtenstein Football Cup – the winners of which qualify for the UEFA Conference League for the 2026–27 season.
- ^ Russia (RUS): On 28 February 2022, Russian football clubs and national teams were suspended from FIFA and UEFA competitions due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[6] The tables reflect Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA competitions.[7]
Schedule
[edit]The schedule of the competition is as follows.[8]
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | First qualifying round | 16 June 2026 | 7–8 July 2026 | 14–15 July 2026 |
| Second qualifying round | 17 June 2026 | 21–22 July 2026 | 28–29 July 2026 | |
| Third qualifying round | 20 July 2026 | 4–5 August 2026 | 11 August 2026 | |
| Play-offs | Play-off round | 3 August 2026 | 18–19 August 2026 | 25–26 August 2026 |
| League phase | Matchday 1 | 27 August 2026 | 8–10 September 2026 | |
| Matchday 2 | 13–14 October 2026 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 20–21 October 2026 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 3–4 November 2026 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 24–25 November 2026 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 8–9 December 2026 | |||
| Matchday 7 | 19–20 January 2027 | |||
| Matchday 8 | 27 January 2027 | |||
| Knockout phase | Knockout phase play-offs | 29 January 2027 | 16–17 February 2027 | 23–24 February 2027 |
| Round of 16 | 26 February 2027 | 9–10 March 2027 | 16–17 March 2027 | |
| Quarter-finals | N/a | 6–7 April 2027 | 13–14 April 2027 | |
| Semi-finals | 27–28 April 2027 | 4–5 May 2027 | ||
| Final | 5 June 2027 at the Metropolitano Stadium, Madrid | |||
Qualifying rounds
[edit]First qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 16 June 2026.[9] The first legs were played on 7 and 8 July, and the second legs were played on 14 and 15 July 2026.
The winners of the ties advanced to the Champions Path second qualifying round. Twelve of the losing teams were transferred to the Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round, while the losers of matches 4 and 5, selected following an additional draw for rebalancing purposes, were transferred to the Conference League Champions Path third qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sabah | 4–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | |
| Floriana | 3–5 | 2–0 | 1–5 | |
| Flora | 4–5 | 2–3 | 2–2 | |
| Lincoln Red Imps | 4–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 | |
| Tre Fiori | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | |
| Ararat-Armenia | 4–3 | 2–0 | 2–3 | |
| Vardar | 3–4 | 0–2 | 3–2 (a.e.t.) | |
| Kauno Žalgiris | 4–3 | 1–1 | 3–2 | |
| ML Vitebsk | 1–5 | 1–4 | 0–1 | |
| Petrocub Hîncești | 2–7 | 1–1 | 1–6 | |
| Borac Banja Luka | 1–5 | 1–1 | 0–4 | |
| Víkingur Reykjavík | 3–2 | 1–0 | 2–2 | |
| Kairat | 4–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | |
| KÍ | 4–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 |
Second qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 17 June 2026.[10] The first legs were played on 21 and 22 July, and the second legs were played on 28 and 29 July 2026.
The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round. The losers were transferred to the Europa League third qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Mjällby AIF | 3–0 | 3–0 | 0–0 | |
| Larne | 0–9 | 0–4 | 0–5 | |
| Sabah | 3–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | |
| KÍ | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | |
| AGF | 5–5 (4–3 p) | 1–4 | 4–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Ararat-Armenia | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | |
| Levski Sofia | 3–2 | 1–0 | 2–2 | |
| Omonia | 1–1 (5–6 p) | 1–0 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Thun | 3–4 | 1–1 | 2–3 (a.e.t.) | |
| Víkingur Reykjavík | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–2 | |
| Iberia 1999 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | |
| Egnatia | 5–5 (1–4 p) | 3–3 | 2–2 (a.e.t.) | |
| League Path | ||||
| Fenerbahçe | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | |
| Sturm Graz | 6–0 | 4–0 | 2–0 | |
Third qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 20 July 2026.[11] The first legs were played on 4 and 5 August, and the second legs were played on 11 August 2026.
The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round. The losers of the Champions Path were transferred to the Europa League play-off round, and the losers of the League Path were transferred to the Europa League league phase.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Dinamo Zagreb | 7–1 | 5–0 | 2–1 | |
| Mjällby AIF | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | |
| Levski Sofia | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |
| AGF | 2–5 | 2–1 | 0–4 | |
| Ararat-Armenia | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–2 | |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 3–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | |
| League Path | ||||
| Olympiacos | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | |
| Union Saint-Gilloise | 5–6 | 3–3 | 2–3 (a.e.t.) | |
| Fenerbahçe | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | |
| Sparta Prague | 2–4 | 2–1 | 0–3 | |
Play-off round
[edit]The draw for the play-off round was held on 3 August 2026.[12] The first legs were played on 18 and 19 August, and the second legs were played on 25 and 26 August 2026.
The winners of the ties advanced to the league phase. The losers were transferred to the Europa League league phase.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Levski Sofia | 0–4 | 0–0 | 0–4 | |
| Celtic | 4–5 | 3–0 | 1–5 (a.e.t.) | |
| Dinamo Zagreb | 3–5 | 2–2 | 1–3 | |
| Slovan Bratislava | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 4–6 | 2–1 | 2–5 (a.e.t.) | |
| League Path | ||||
| Fenerbahçe | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | |
| NEC | 1–6 | 1–3 | 0–3 | |
League phase
[edit]Madrid
Madrid teams
Manchester teams
Como, LASK, Sabah and Viking are making their debut appearances since the introduction of the group stage or league phase, with Sabah making their debut appearance in a major UEFA competition group or league phase and Como qualifying for European football for the first time in their history.[13] For the first season since 1999–2000, Norway has two clubs in the Champions League main stage.[14] Additionally, two Turkish sides qualified for the main phase for the first time since the 2007–08 season.[15]
A total of 16 national associations are being represented in the league phase.
Table
[edit]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. Teams ranked from 25th to 36th are eliminated from all competitions.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 3 | Advance to round of 16 (seeded) | |
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 3 | ||
| 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 3 | ||
| 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 3 | ||
| 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 3 | ||
| 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 3 | ||
| 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 3 | ||
| 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 3 | ||
| 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | Advance to knockout phase play-offs (seeded) | |
| 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | ||
| 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Advance to knockout phase play-offs (unseeded) | |
| 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | ||
| 29 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 0 | ||
| 29 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 0 | ||
| 31 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 0 | ||
| 32 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | ||
| 33 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0 | ||
| 34 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0 | ||
| 35 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | −5 | 0 | ||
| 36 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0 |
Rules for classification: League phase tiebreakers
Results
[edit]Statistics
[edit]Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round.
Table correct as of 10 September 2026.
Top goalscorers
[edit]| Rank[17] | Player | Team | Goals | Minutes played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 62 | ||
| 73 | ||||
| 3 | 2 | 64 | ||
| 71 | ||||
| 90 | ||||
| 10 | Forty-six players | 1 | N/a | |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ Landauro, Inti (20 May 2025). "Spain to host 2027 Champions' League final at Atletico Madrid's stadium". Reuters. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ↑ "Regulations of the UEFA Champions League, 2026/27 Season". Union of European Football Associations. 2026. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
- ↑ "Association coefficients 2024/25". Union of European Football Associations. July 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ↑ "Shakhtar earn automatic place in 2026/27 league phase thanks to Champions League rebalancing". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 11 May 2026. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ "Sporting CP secure Champions League league phase berth following Aston Villa's Europa League triumph". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 25 May 2026. Retrieved 25 May 2026.
- ↑ "Ukraine crisis: FIFA and UEFA suspend all Russian clubs and national teams". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ↑ "UEFA decisions for upcoming competitions relating to the ongoing suspension of Russian national teams and clubs. However this could change depending on what happens" (Press release). Union of European Football Associations. 2 May 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
- ↑ "2026 European football calendar: Match and draw dates for all UEFA competitions, draws and events". Union of European Football Associations. 15 December 2025. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League first qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 16 June 2026. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League second qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 17 June 2026. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League third qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 20 July 2026. Retrieved 20 July 2026.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League play-off draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 3 August 2026. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Meet the 2026/27 Champions League league phase teams". UEFA. 27 August 2026.
- ↑ "Norway to Have Two Teams in the Champions League for First Time in 27 Years". Sweden Herald. 26 August 2026.
- ↑ "Türkiye to field 2 clubs in Champions League for 6th time". Türkiye Today. 27 August 2026.
- ↑ "League phase table". UEFA. Retrieved 10 September 2026.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League – Top Scorers". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 10 September 2026.