2025–26 UEFA Europa League qualifying is the preliminary phase of the2025–26 UEFA Europa League, prior to the competition proper. Qualification consists of the qualifying phase (first to third rounds) and the play-off round. It began on 10 July and will end on 28 August 2025.[1]
A total of 53 teams will compete in the qualifying system, which includes the qualifying phase and the play-off round. The 12 winners of the play-off round will advance to theleague phase, to join the 13 teams that enter in the league stage, along with the seven losers of theChampions League play-off round (five from theChampions Path and two from theLeague Path), and the four losers of theChampions League third qualifying round (League Path).[2]
Times areCEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).
The qualifying phase was split into two paths – the Champions Path and the Main Path. The Champions Path contained teams which were eliminated from theChampions League Champions Path, and the Main Path contained teams which qualified as the third-placed or the fourth-placed team from their domestic league or as domestic cup winners. The paths were merged in the play-off round.
Each tie will be played overtwo legs, with each team playing one leg at home. The team that scores more goals on aggregate over the two legs will advance to the next round. If the aggregate score is level at the end of normal time of the second leg,extra time will be played, and if the same number of goals is scored by both teams during extra time, the tie will be decided by apenalty shoot-out.[3]
In the draws for each round, teams were seeded based on theirUEFA 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 was 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 have been known at the time of the draws, the seeding was carried out under the assumption that the team with the higher coefficient of an undecided tie advanced to the subsequent round. In practice, this means if the team with the lower coefficient advanced in the Europa League or the team with the higher coefficient was eliminated from the Champions League, it simply took the seeding of its opponent.
Prior to the draws, UEFA formed "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 could not be drawn into the same tie. After the draws, the order of legs of a tie could be reversed by UEFA due to scheduling or venue conflicts.
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.[1]
| Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round | 17 June 2025 | 10 July 2025 | 17 July 2025 |
| Second qualifying round | 18 June 2025 | 24 July 2025 | 31 July 2025 |
| Third qualifying round | 21 July 2025 | 7 August 2025 | 14 August 2025 |
| Play-off round | 4 August 2025 | 21 August 2025 | 28 August 2025 |
In the qualifying stage, the teams were divided into two paths:
The winners of the third qualifying round were combined into a single path for the play-off round:
All teams eliminated from the qualifying phase and play-off round enter theConference League:
Below are the participating teams (with their 2025UEFA club coefficients, not used as seeding for the Champions Path, however),[4] grouped by their starting rounds.
| Key to colours |
|---|
| Winners of play-off round advance toleague phase |
| Losers of play-off round enterConference League league phase |
| Losers of third qualifying round enteredConference League play-off round |
| Losers of second qualifying round enteredConference League third qualifying round |
| Losers of first qualifying round enteredConference League second qualifying round |
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 17 June 2025.
A total of 16 teams played in the first qualifying round. Seeding of the teams was based on their2025 UEFA club coefficients.[4] Before the draw, UEFA allocated the teams into two groups of four seeded teams and four unseeded teams in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.[5] The first team drawn in each tie was the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
The first legs were played on 10 July, and the second legs were played on 17 July 2025.
The winners of the ties advanced to the second qualifying round. The losers were transferred to theConference League Main Path second qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 6–0 | 6–0 | 0–0 | |
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 5–2 | 4–0 | 1–2 | |
| Spartak Trnava | 2–3 | 0–1 | 2–2 | |
| Sabah | 5–6 | 2–3 | 3–3 (a.e.t.) | |
| Legia Warsaw | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |
| Levski Sofia | 1–1 (3–1p) | 0–0 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| AEK Larnaca | 2–2 (6–5p) | 1–0 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | |
| Paks | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–3 |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 6–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[8] |
| Ilves | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[10] |
Shakhtar Donetsk won 6–0 on aggregate.
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 4–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[12] |
Sheriff Tiraspol won 5–2 on aggregate.
| Spartak Trnava | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[16] |
|
| BK Häcken | 2–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[18] |
|
BK Häcken won 3–2 on aggregate.
Celje won 6–5 on aggregate.
| Legia Warsaw | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[24] |
Legia Warsaw won 2–0 on aggregate.
| Levski Sofia | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[28] |
1–1 on aggregate; Levski Sofia won 3–1 on penalties.
| AEK Larnaca | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[33] |
2–2 on aggregate; AEK Larnaca won 6–5 on penalties.
| CFR Cluj | 3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[39] |
CFR Cluj won 3–0 on aggregate.
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 18 June 2025.
A total of 16 teams played in the second qualifying round. Seeding of the teams was based on their2025 UEFA club coefficients.[4] Before the draw, UEFA allocated the teams into two groups of four seeded teams and four unseeded teams in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.[40] The first team drawn in each tie was the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
The first legs were played on 24 July and the second legs were played on 31 July 2025.
The winners of the ties advanced to the Main Path third qualifying round. The losers were transferred to theConference League Main Path third qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lugano | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Celje | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | |
| Levski Sofia | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Baník Ostrava | 3–4 | 2–2 | 1–2 | |
| Anderlecht | 2–2 (2–4p) | 1–0 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | |
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 2–7 | 1–3 | 1–4 | |
| Midtjylland | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | |
| Beşiktaş | 2–6 | 2–4 | 0–2 |
| CFR Cluj | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[45] |
CFR Cluj won 1–0 on aggregate.
| Celje | 1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[47] |
AEK Larnaca won 3–2 on aggregate.
| Levski Sofia | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[51] |
| Braga | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[53] |
Braga won 1–0 on aggregate.
| Baník Ostrava | 2–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[55] |
Legia Warsaw won 4–3 on aggregate.
| Anderlecht | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[59] |
2–2 on aggregate; BK Häcken won 4–2 on penalties.
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 1–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[64] |
Utrecht won 7–2 on aggregate.
| Midtjylland | 1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[68] |
|
Midtjylland won 3–2 on aggregate.
| Beşiktaş | 2–4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[72] |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[74] |
Shakhtar Donetsk won 6–2 on aggregate.
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 21 July 2025.
A total of 26 teams played in the third qualifying round. Seeding of the teams was based on their2025 UEFA club coefficients.[4] Before the draw, UEFA formed groups of seeded and unseeded teams per the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. The first team drawn in each tie was the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
| Group 1 | Group 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
The first legs were played on 5, 6 and 7 August, and the second legs were played on 12 and 14 August 2025.
The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round. The losers were transferred to theConference League play-off round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Lincoln Red Imps | 1–1 (6–5p) | 1–1 | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | |
| Rijeka | 4–3 | 1–2 | 3–1 | |
| RFS | 1–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | |
| Hamrun Spartans | 2–5 | 1–2 | 1–3 | |
| Zrinjski Mostar | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | |
| FCSB | 6–3 | 3–2 | 3–1 | |
| Main Path | ||||
| AEK Larnaca | 5–3 | 4–1 | 1–2 | |
| Fredrikstad | 1–5 | 1–3 | 0–2 | |
| CFR Cluj | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | |
| PAOK | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | |
| Servette | 2–5 | 1–3 | 1–2 | |
| BK Häcken | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | |
| Panathinaikos | 0–0 (4–3p) | 0–0 | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | |
| Lincoln Red Imps | 1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[77] |
|
1–1 on aggregate; Lincoln Red Imps won 6–5 on penalties.
| Rijeka | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[81] |
| Shelbourne | 1–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[83] |
Rijeka won 4–3 on aggregate.
KuPS won 3–1 on aggregate.
| Hamrun Spartans | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[89] |
Maccabi Tel Aviv won 5–2 on aggregate.
| Zrinjski Mostar | 1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[93] |
| Breiðablik | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[95] |
|
Zrinjski Mostar won 3–2 on aggregate.
FCSB won 6–3 on aggregate.
| AEK Larnaca | 4–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[102] |
|
AEK Larnaca won 5–3 on aggregate.
| Fredrikstad | 1–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[106] |
|
| Midtjylland | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[108] |
Midtjylland won 5–1 on aggregate.
| CFR Cluj | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[110] |
|
| Braga | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[112] |
Braga won 4–1 on aggregate.
| PAOK | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[114] |
PAOK won 1–0 on aggregate.
| Servette | 1–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[118] |
Utrecht won 5–2 on aggregate.
| Brann | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[124] |
Brann won 2–1 on aggregate.
| Panathinaikos | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[126] |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[128] | ||
| Penalties | ||
| 3–4 | ||
0–0 on aggregate; Panathinaikos won 4–3 on penalties.
The draw for the play-off round was held on 4 August 2025.
A total of 24 teams will play in the play-off round. Seeding of the teams was based on their2025 UEFA club coefficients.[4] Before the draw, UEFA formed groups of seeded and unseeded teams per the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. The first team drawn in each tie was the home team for the first leg.
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded | Seeded | Unseeded |
The first legs were played on 21 August, and the second legs will be played on 27 and 28 August 2025.
The winners of the ties will advance to the league phase. The losers will be transferred to theConference League league phase.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 3–2 | 3–1 | 0–1 | |
| Shkëndija | 3–5 | 2–1 | 1–4 (a.e.t.) | |
| Slovan Bratislava | 2–4 | 0–1 | 2–3 | |
| Malmö FF | 5–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | |
| Panathinaikos | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | |
| Aberdeen | 2–5 | 2–2 | 0–3 | |
| Lech Poznań | 3–6 | 1–5 | 2–1 | |
| Midtjylland | 6–0 | 4–0 | 2–0 | |
| Lincoln Red Imps | 1–9 | 0–4 | 1–5 | |
| Zrinjski Mostar | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–0 | |
| Brann | 6–1 | 2–1 | 4–0 | |
| Rijeka | 1–5 | 1–0 | 0–5 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 3–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[130] |
|
Maccabi Tel Aviv won 3–2 on aggregate.
| Shkëndija | 2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[135] |
|
Ludogorets Razgrad won 5–3 on aggregate.
| Slovan Bratislava | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[139] |
|
| Young Boys | 3–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[141] |
Young Boys won 4–2 on aggregate.
| Malmö FF | 3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[143] |
| Sigma Olomouc | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[145] |
|
Malmö FF won 5–0 on aggregate.
| Panathinaikos | 2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[147] |
|
| Samsunspor | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[149] |
Panathinaikos won 2–1 on aggregate.
| FCSB | 3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[153] |
FCSB won 5–2 on aggregate.
| Lech Poznań | 1–5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[155] |
|
Genk won 6–3 on aggregate.
| Midtjylland | 4–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[159] |
| KuPS | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[161] |
Midtjylland won 6–0 on aggregate.
| Lincoln Red Imps | 0–4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[163] |
Braga won 9–1 on aggregate.
| Zrinjski Mostar | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[167] |
| Utrecht | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[169] |
Utrecht won 2–0 on aggregate.
| Brann | 2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[171] |
|
| AEK Larnaca | 0–4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[173] |
Brann won 6–1 on aggregate.
| PAOK | 5–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report[177] |
PAOK won 5–1 on aggregate.