 TheRed Bull Arena inLeipzig will host the final | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | Qualifying: 8 July – 28 August 2025 Competition proper: 2 October 2025 – 27 May 2026 |
| Teams | Competition proper: 24+12 Total: 109+55 (from 54 associations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 54 |
| Goals scored | 132 (2.44 per match) |
| Attendance | 602,348 (11,155 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Franko Kovačević (Celje) 5 goals |
2026–27 → All statistics correct as of 6 November 2025. | |
The2025–26 UEFA Conference League is the fifth season of theUEFA Conference League, Europe's tertiary clubfootball tournament organised byUEFA.
This is the second UEFA Conference League played under a new format involving a 36-team league phase.[1] The new format also does not allow teams to transfer from the Europa League to the Conference League from the league phase onwards, and thus the Conference League titleholders (Chelsea) are unable to defend their title as the winner of the Conference League automatically qualifies for the Europa League league phase.[2] However, Chelsea had already qualified for the2025–26 UEFA Champions League league phase via their domestic league position prior to winning the Conference League, so the automatic berth in the Europa League was not required and the access list was rebalanced.
Thefinal will be played at theRed Bull Arena inLeipzig, Germany.[3] The winners of the tournament will automatically qualify for the2026–27 UEFA Europa League league phase, unless they qualify for the2026–27 UEFA Champions League or Europa League through their league performance. In which case, the access list will be rebalanced.
A total of 164 teams from 54 of the 55UEFA member associations are participating in the 2025–26 UEFA Conference League. The association ranking based on theUEFA association coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[4]
For the 2025–26 UEFA Conference League, the associations were allocated places according to their 2024UEFA association coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2019–20 to 2023–24.[5]
Apart from the allocation based on the association coefficients, associations could have additional teams participating in the Conference League, as noted below:
|
|
|
The following is the access list for this season.
| Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from previous round | Teams transferred from Champions League | Teams transferred from Europa League | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round (48 teams) |
| ||||
| Second qualifying round (100 teams) | Champions Path (12 teams) |
| |||
| League Path (88 teams) |
|
|
| ||
| Third qualifying round (60 teams) | Champions Path (8 teams) |
|
| ||
| League Path (52 teams) |
|
| |||
| Play-off round (48 teams) | Champions Path (10 teams) |
|
| ||
| League Path (38 teams) |
|
|
| ||
| League phase (36 teams) |
|
| |||
| Knockout phase play-offs (16 teams) |
| ||||
| Round of 16 (16 teams) |
| ||||
The information here reflects the ongoing suspension of Russia in European football, and so the following changes to the default access list were made:
As theChampions League title holders (Paris Saint-Germain) qualified for the Champions League via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:
As theConference League title holders (Chelsea) qualified for the Champions League phase via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:
The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round were divided into Champions Path (CH) and Main Path (MP).
Two teams not playing in a national top division will take part in the competition:Vaduz (2nd tier) andSpaeri (2nd tier).
Notes
The schedule of the competition is as follows.[16] Matches are scheduled for Thursdays, with an exclusive day of 18 December, apart from the final, which takes place on a Wednesday, though exceptionally can take place on Tuesdays or Wednesdays due to scheduling conflicts.[17]
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | 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-offs | Play-off round | 4 August 2025 | 21 August 2025 | 28 August 2025 |
| League phase | Matchday 1 | 29 August 2025 | 2 October 2025 | |
| Matchday 2 | 23 October 2025 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 6 November 2025 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 27 November 2025 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 11 December 2025 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 18 December 2025 | |||
| Knockout phase | Knockout phase play-offs | 16 January 2026 | 19 February 2026 | 26 February 2026 |
| Round of 16 | 27 February 2026 | 12 March 2026 | 19 March 2026 | |
| Quarter-finals | 9 April 2026 | 16 April 2026 | ||
| Semi-finals | 30 April 2026 | 7 May 2026 | ||
| Final | 27 May 2026 atRed Bull Arena,Leipzig | |||
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 17 June 2025.[18]The first legs were played on 8 and 10 July, and the second legs were played on 16 and 17 July 2025.
The winners of the ties advanced to the second qualifying round.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
NSÍ  | 4–5 |  HJK | 4–0 | 0–5 (a.e.t.) |
Torpedo Kutaisi  | 5–4 |  Ordabasy | 4–3 | 1–1 |
Željezničar  | 2–4 |  Koper | 1–1 | 1–3 |
| SJK | 1–4 | KÍ | 1–2 | 0–2 |
Nõmme Kalju  | 2–1 |  Partizani | 1–1 | 1–0 (a.e.t.) |
Tre Fiori  | 1–5 |  Pyunik | 1–0 | 0–5 |
St Patrick's Athletic  | 3–0 |  Hegelmann | 1–0 | 2–0 |
Dečić  | 3–2 |  Sileks | 2–0 | 1–2 |
| Sutjeska | 3–2 |  Dynamo Brest | 1–2 | 2–0 |
Larne  | 2–2 (4–2p) |  Auda | 0–0 | 2–2 (a.e.t.) |
Floriana  | 5–3 |  Haverfordwest County | 2–1 | 3–2 |
| Torpedo-BelAZ Zhodino | 4–0 | Rabotnicki | 3–0 | 1–0 |
Magpies  | 3–7 | Paide Linnameeskond | 2–3 | 1–4 |
| Birkirkara | 1–3 |  Petrocub Hîncești | 1–0 | 0–3 |
Atlètic Club d'Escaldes  | 5–2 |  F91 Dudelange | 2–0 | 3–2 |
Valur  | 5–1 | Flora | 3–0 | 2–1 |
Malisheva  | 0–9 | Víkingur Reykjavík | 0–1 | 0–8 |
| Racing Union | 1–3 | Dila Gori | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Vllaznia | 4–3 | Daugavpils | 0–1 | 4–2 |
| Urartu | 1–6 | Neman Grodno | 1–2 | 0–4 |
| Vardar | 5–2[a] | La Fiorita | 3–0 | 2–2 |
| Kauno Žalgiris | 4–1 | Penybont | 3–0 | 1–1 |
| St Joseph's | 5–4 | Cliftonville | 2–2 | 3–2 (a.e.t.) |
| Borac Banja Luka | 3–4 | FC Santa Coloma | 1–4 | 2–0 |
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 18 June 2025.The first legs were played on 22, 23 and 24 July, and the second legs were played on 29 and 31 July 2025.
The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round.
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 21 July 2025.The first legs were played on 5 and 7 August, and the second legs were played on 13 and 14 August 2025.
The draw for the play-off round was held on 4 August 2025.The first legs were played on 21 August, and the second legs were played on 27 and 28 August 2025.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions Path | ||||
| Hamrun Spartans | 3–2 | RFS | 1–0 | 2–2 |
| Shelbourne | 5–1 | Linfield | 3–1 | 2–0 |
| Breiðablik | 5–2 | Virtus | 2–1 | 3–1 |
| Drita | 3–1 | Differdange 03 | 2–1 | 1–0 |
| Olimpija Ljubljana | 3–7 | Noah | 1–4 | 2–3 |
| Main Path | ||||
Strasbourg  | 3–2 |  Brøndby | 0–0 | 3–2 |
Jagiellonia Białystok  | 4–1 | Dinamo City | 3–0 | 1–1 |
Shakhtar Donetsk  | 3–2 |  Servette | 1–1 | 2–1 (a.e.t.) |
Anderlecht  | 1–3 |  AEK Athens | 1–1 | 0–2 |
İstanbul Başakşehir  | 2–5 |  Universitatea Craiova | 1–2 | 1–3 |
Crystal Palace  | 1–0 |  Fredrikstad | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| Celje | 3–0 |  Baník Ostrava | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| Raków Częstochowa | 3–1 |  Arda | 1–0 | 2–1 |
Hibernian  | 4–5 | Legia Warsaw | 1–2 | 3–3 (a.e.t.) |
| Levski Sofia | 1–6 |  AZ | 0–2 | 1–4 |
| Polissya Zhytomyr | 2–6 |  Fiorentina | 0–3 | 2–3 |
Győri ETO  | 2–3 |  Rapid Wien | 2–1 | 0–2 |
| Neman Grodno | 0–5 |  Rayo Vallecano | 0–1 | 0–4 |
| Lausanne-Sport | 2–1 | Beşiktaş | 1–1 | 1–0 |
Santa Clara  | 1–2 | Shamrock Rovers | 1–2 | 0–0 |
| Rosenborg | 3–5 |  Mainz 05 | 2–1 | 1–4 |
| Sparta Prague | 2–1 | Riga | 2–0 | 0–1 |
BK Häcken  | 7–3 | CFR Cluj | 7–2 | 0–1 |
| Wolfsberger AC | 2–2 (4–5p) |  Omonia | 2–1 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) |
The Conference League league phase comprises the 24 winners of the Conference League play-off round, as well as 12 losers of theEuropa League play-off round.
The league phase draw for the 2025–26 UEFA Conference League took place at theGrimaldi Forum inMonaco on 29 August 2025. The 36 teams were divided into six pots of six teams each based on theirUEFA club coefficient.
The draw ceremony was held along with the league phase draw for the2025–26 UEFA Europa League, as a change from the previous season. In the previous season's draw the 36 teams were manually drawn one at a time; this season's draw was entirely computer generated with all 36 teams' opponents and home/away locations drawn at once, but revealed pot by pot.[19] Each team faces one opponent from each of the six pots, with one home and one away match from each pot pair of Pots 1 and 2, Pots 3 and 4, and Pots 5 and 6. Teams could not face opponents from their own association, and could only be drawn against a maximum of two sides from the same association.[20][21]
Crystal Palace,Drita,Hamrun Spartans,KuPS,Rayo Vallecano,Samsunspor,Shelbourne,Shkëndija,Sigma Olomouc andUniversitatea Craiova made their debut appearances in a major UEFA competition group or league phase.Hamrun Spartans were the first team from Malta to play in a major UEFA competition group stage or league phase.[22]
A total of 29 national associations were represented in the league phase. Poland were the first country to have four clubs play in the Conference League group stage/league phase, and it was also the first time in history that four Polish clubs competed in any edition of a UEFA competition group stage or league phase.[23]
The top eight ranked teams 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.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samsunspor | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | +7 | 9 | Advance toround of 16 (seeded) |
| 2 | Celje | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 9 | |
| 3 | Mainz 05 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 9 | |
| 4 | AEK Larnaca | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 7 | |
| 5 | Lausanne-Sport | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 7 | |
| 6 | Rayo Vallecano | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 7 | |
| 7 | Strasbourg | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 7 | |
| 8 | Fiorentina | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | |
| 9 | Crystal Palace | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 6 | Advance toknockout phase play-offs (seeded) |
| 10 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 6 | |
| 11 | KuPS | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 5 | |
| 12 | Raków Częstochowa | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 5 | |
| 13 | Drita | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 5[a] | |
| 13 | Jagiellonia Białystok | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 5[a] | |
| 15 | AEK Athens | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 4 | |
| 16 | Sparta Prague | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 4 | |
| 17 | Noah | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | Advance toknockout phase play-offs (unseeded) |
| 18 |  Rijeka | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |
| 19 | Sigma Olomouc | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 4 | |
| 20 | Universitatea Craiova | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 4[b] | |
| 21 | Shkëndija | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 4[b] | |
| 22 | Lincoln Red Imps | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 4 | |
| 23 | Lech Poznań | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 3 | |
| 24 | Dynamo Kyiv | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 3 | |
| 25 | Legia Warsaw | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 3 | |
| 26 | Zrinjski Mostar | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 3 | |
| 27 | AZ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 3 | |
| 28 | BK Häcken | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 2 | |
| 29 | Omonia | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 2 | |
| 30 | Shelbourne | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 1 | |
| 31 | Shamrock Rovers | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 1 | |
| 32 | Breiðablik | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 1 | |
| 33 | Aberdeen | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 9 | −7 | 1 | |
| 34 |  Slovan Bratislava | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 0 | |
| 35 | Hamrun Spartans | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0 | |
| 36 | Rapid Wien | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 0 |
Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round.
Table correct as of 6 November 2025.
| Rank[25] | Player | Team | Goals | Minutes played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Franko Kovačević | Celje | 5 | 257 |
| 2 | Nardin Mulahusejnović | Noah | 3 | 211 |
| 3 | Eighteen players | 2 | — | |
