Headline: Europa League Draw Scheduled for August with 36 Teams Competing
The league phase draw for the 2026-27 Europa League is set to occur on Friday, 28 August, at 12:00 BST in Monaco. A total of 36 teams will participate in the draw for Europe’s second-tier club competition, similar to the Champions League draw held the previous day.
During the league phase, each team is scheduled to compete against eight different opponents, with half of the matches taking place at home and the other half away. The 36 teams will be divided into four pots for the draw. Pot one consists of the highest-ranked teams, while pot four contains the lower-ranked teams. The pot distribution is based on each club’s UEFA coefficient ranking accumulated over the five seasons leading up to the conclusion of the 2025-26 season.
In this format, each team will draw two opponents from each pot but will not face any teams from their own country. The top eight teams from this league phase will advance to the round of 16, while teams finishing between ninth and 24th place will enter the knockout phase play-offs. Those ranked 25th to 36th will exit the competition once the league phase concludes.
Who is in each pot?
Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen leads pot one alongside Portuguese team Benfica, Italian teams Juventus and AC Milan, and Ligue 1 clubs Lyon and Marseille. AZ Alkmaar, Olympiakos, and Real Sociedad also feature in the top pot.
Scottish champions Celtic are among the nine teams positioned in pot two, which includes Ferencvaros, Viktoria Plzen, Union Saint-Gilloise, Dinamo Zagreb, Red Bull Salzburg, Sparta Prague, Rennes, and Anderlecht.
The English clubs Crystal Palace, Bournemouth, and Sunderland occupy pot three, along with La Liga’s Celta Vigo and teams like Sturm Graz, Lech Poznan, Celje, Jagiellonia Bialystok, and Omonia.
In pot four, the Portuguese second-tier team Torreense makes its European debut. Joining them are Hoffenheim, Besiktas, Hapoel Be’er Sheva, NEC Nijmegen, OFI Crete, Lillestrom, Aarat-Armenia, and Levski Sofia.
Which teams are in each pot?
Pot one
- Bayer Leverkusen
- Benfica
- Juventus
- AC Milan
- Lyon
- Marseille
- AZ Alkmaar
- Olympiakos
- Real Sociedad
Pot two
- Celtic
- Ferencvaros
- Viktoria Plzen
- Union Saint-Gilloise
- Dinamo Zagreb
- Red Bull Salzburg
- Sparta Prague
- Rennes
- Anderlecht
Pot three
- Crystal Palace
- Bournemouth
- Sunderland
- Celta Vigo
- Sturm Graz
- Lech Poznan
- Celje
- Jagiellonia Bialystok
- Omonia
Pot four
- Torreense
- Hoffenheim
- Besiktas
- Hapoel Be’er Sheva
- NEC Nijmegen
- OFI Crete
- Lillestrom
- Aarat-Armenia
- Levski Sofia
The league phase draw for the 2026-27 Europa League takes place on Friday, 28 August at 12:00 BST in Monaco.
Much like the Champions League draw on Thursday, a total of 36 teams will enter the draw for Europe’s second-tier club competition.
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In the league phase, each team will face eight different teams once, with four home matches and four away matches.
For the draw, the 36 teams will be placed into four pots, with pot one being the highest-ranked and four being the lowest. The pot placements are based on the club’s Uefa club coefficient ranking from the five-season period ending at the conclusion of 2025-26.
Each team will face two teams from each of the four pots and cannot face a team from the same country as themselves.
The teams who finish in the top eight will qualify for the Europa League’s round of 16. Those between ninth and 24th place will enter the play-off knockout round. The 12 teams ranked between 25th and 36th place will exit the competition when the league phase is concluded.
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Who is in each pot?
Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen front up pot one alongside Portuguese outfit Benfica, Italian duo Juventus and AC Milan, as well as Ligue 1 sides Lyon and Marseille. AZ Alkmaar, Olympiakos and Real Sociedad complete the top pot.
Scottish champions Celtic are part of the group of nine teams in pot two. They are joined by Ferencvaros, Viktoria Plzen, Union Saint-Gilloise, Dinamo Zagreb, Red Bull Salzburg, Sparta Prague, Rennes and Anderlecht.
The English trio of Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Sunderland are all in pot three. La Liga side Celta Vigo also feature, as do Sturm Graz, Lech Poznan, Celje, Jagiellonia Bialystok and Omonia.
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Portuguese second-tier side Torreense, on their European debut, are in pot four. Hoffenheim and Besiktas join them in the bottom pot, alongside Hapoel Be’er Sheva, NEC Nijmegen, OFI Crete, Lillestrom, Aarat-Armenia and Levski Sofia.
Which teams are in each pot?
Pot one
Pot two
Pot three
Pot four
This article is the latest from BBC Sport’s Ask Me Anything team.
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