The upcoming draws for the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Europa Conference League will determine the opponents for several British clubs, including Celtic, Bournemouth, Sunderland and Crystal Palace. The Europa League group-stage draw, featuring Celtic, Bournemouth, Sunderland and Crystal Palace, is scheduled for 12:00 pm UK time on Friday. Immediately after, the Conference League draw will take place, potentially involving clubs such as Brighton, Hearts, Hibernian, Motherwell and Northern Irish side Larne. A total of twelve clubs earn a direct place in the Europa League group stage.
In addition, the holder of the UEFA Conference League title – Crystal Palace – occupies a guaranteed slot. Another twelve places are filled by clubs that advance through the Europa League play‑off round.
The remaining spots, bringing the total to thirty‑six, are occupied by eleven teams that drop down after losing in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round or its play‑offs. The clubs that have already secured a berth in the Europa League group phase include AC Milan, AZ Alkmaar, Bayer Leverkusen, Bournemouth, Celta Vigo, Crystal Palace, Hoffenheim, Juventus, Marseille, Olympiacos, Real Sociedad, Rennes, Sparta Prague, Sturm Graz, Sunderland, Torreense and Union Saint‑Gilloise.
Among the teams that fell short in the Champions League play‑offs but will now compete in the Europa League are Celtic, Hapoel Beer‑Sheva and NEC Breda. For fans without a Sky subscription, a free, contract‑free option to watch highlights is available, and Sky Sports users can stream matches via the Sky Sports app. If clubs lose in the Champions League play‑offs, they may still find themselves in the Europa League. Possible entrants under this scenario include AEK Athens or Levski Sofia, Dinamo Zagreb or Viking, Slovan Bratislava or Celje, and Fenerbahçe or Lyon.
Conversely, clubs that win their Europa League play‑off ties will also join the group stage; this list features Aarhus, Anderlecht, Ararat‑Armenia, Benfica, Beşiktaş, Crvena Zvezda, CSKA Sofia, Egnatia, Ferencváros, Iberia Tbilisi, Jagiellonia, Kairat Almaty, Kauno Žalgiris, Lech Poznań, Lillestrøm, Mjällby, OFI Crete, Omonia, Salzburg, Sint‑Truidense, Thun, Trabzonspor, Union Craiova and Viktoria Plzeň. All thirty‑six Europa League participants must qualify via the play‑off route; none receive an automatic entry beyond the twelve direct qualifiers and the title‑holder slot. In the Conference League, the clubs that can qualify by winning their play‑off round are numerous and span a wide geographic range: Ajax, Atalanta, Austria Vienna, Borac, Braga, Brann, Brighton, FC Copenhagen, Dinamo City, Drita, Freiburg, Gent, Getafe, Górnik Zabrze, Hapoel Tel‑Aviv, Hajduk Split, Hearts, Hibernian, Hradec Králové, Inter Escaldes, Inter Turku, Jablonec, Klaksvík, KuPS, Lincoln Red Imps, Larne, Lugano, Maccabi Tel‑Aviv, Midtjylland, Monaco, Motherwell, Nordsjælland, Pafos, Panathinaikos, PAOK, Partizan, Qarabağ, Raków, Rangers, Riga, Rijeka, Shamrock Rovers, Sion, SK Rapid, St Gallen, Tromsø, Twente and Víkingur R.
Should clubs lose in the Europa League play‑offs, they will be redirected to the Conference League. That secondary list mirrors many of the teams already mentioned for the Europa League, underscoring the fluid nature of UEFA’s secondary competitions. Each Europa League side is guaranteed at least eight group‑stage matches, split evenly between home and away fixtures, against eight distinct opponents.
In contrast, Conference League clubs play six matches – three at home and three away – against six different teams. After the group stage, the top eight clubs in each competition progress directly to the knockout phase. Teams finishing ninth through twenty‑fourth enter a two‑legged play‑off to vie for the remaining eight places in the round of 16.
Clubs placed twenty‑fifth to thirty‑sixth are eliminated from European competition for the season. During the group phase, UEFA rules prevent clubs from being drawn against a team from the same nation, and a maximum of two clubs from the same country may appear in a single group.
The schedule for the Europa League group matches is as follows: - Matchday 1: 16–17 September - Matchday 2: 15 October - Matchday 3: 22 October - Matchday 4: 5 November - Matchday 5: 26 November - Matchday 6: 10 December - Matchday 7: 21 January 2027 - Matchday 8: 28 January 2027 The Conference League follows a slightly different timetable: - Matchday 1: 15 October - Matchday 2: 22 October - Matchday 3: 5 November - Matchday 4: 26 November - Matchday 5: 10 December - Matchday 6: 17 December The climax of the 2026/27 Europa League will be the final on 26 May 2027, hosted at the Stadion Frankfurt in Germany. The Conference League final is slated for 2 June 2025 at Beşiktaş Park in Istanbul, Turkey.
The knockout schedule for the Europa League is: - Play‑off round: 18 & 25 February 2027 - Round of 16: 11 & 18 March 2027 - Quarter‑finals: 8 & 15 April 2027 - Semi‑finals: 29 April & 6 May 2027 - Final: 26 May 2027 (Stadion Frankfurt) The Conference League follows an identical knockout calendar, culminating in its final on 2 June 2027 at Beşiktaş Park. Fans can also take part in the Super 6 competition for a chance to win a £1 million prize, with free entry available to all registered participants.