The schedule and rules for the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds have been announced, with 29 teams already directly qualified for the league phase, and the remaining 7 spots to be determined through qualifiers.

The qualifying rounds consist of the first round, second round, third round, and play-offs. From the second round onwards, teams are divided into the Champions Path and the League Path. The Champions Path comprises national league champions, while the League Path includes teams that qualified for multiple spots through their leagues. The round a team enters the qualifiers depends on the club coefficient ranking of its associated federation.

UEFA designed this qualifying system to ensure that teams from at least 37 member associations can enter the league phase of the Champions League, Europa League, or Conference League. Teams that lose in the Champions League and Europa League qualifiers will have the opportunity to continue competing in the Europa League or Conference League; teams that lose in the Champions League and Europa League play-offs will directly enter the league phase of the Europa League and Conference League, respectively.

Qualifying Rounds and Play-off Schedule

- First Qualifying Round: July 7/8 and 14/15, 2026 (Draw: June 16)

- Second Qualifying Round: July 21/22 and 28/29, 2026 (Draw: June 17)

- Third Qualifying Round: August 4/5 and 11, 2026 (Draw: July 20)

- Play-offs: August 18/19 and 25/26, 2026 (Draw: August 3)

The draw for the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League league phase will take place on Thursday, August 27, involving a total of 36 teams, including 29 directly qualified teams and 7 play-off winners.

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