About the Conference League draws
The draw for the league phase of the Conference League took place on August 29th in Monaco, following the Europa League draw. 36 teams went into the draw after being split into six pots of six teams based on UEFA's club coefficient rankings.
In a change from the previous season, when the 36 teams were manually drawn one at a time, the draw was entirely computer-generated, with all 36 teams' opponents and home/away locations drawn at once, but revealed pot by pot.
Each team got 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.
The draw for the round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final was held on February 27th. The top eight sides from the league phase automatically qualified for the round of 16.
The following eight sides are alive in the Conference League (listed by league-phase finish) heading into the quarter-finals:
1. Strasbourg (FRA), 3. AEK Athens (GRE), 5. Rayo Vallecano (ESP), 6. Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR), 7. Mainz (GER), 10. Crystal Palace (ENG), 14. AZ (NED), 15. Fiorentina (ITA)
Round of 16 results:
Lech Poznan 3-4 Shakhtar
AZ Alkmaar 6-1 Sparta Prague
Crystal Palace 2-1 AEK Larnaca
Fiorentina 4-2 Rakow
Samsunspor 2-3 Rayo Vallecano
Celje 2-4 AEK Athens
Sigma Olomouc 0-2 Mainz
Rijeka 2-3 Strasbourg
Quarter-final fixtures:
Quarter-final 1: Shakhtar vs AZ Alkmaar
Quarter-final 2: Crystal Palace vs Fiorentina
Quarter-final 3: Rayo Vallecano vs AEK Athens
Quarter-final 4: Mainz vs Strasbourg
Semi-final draw:
Quarter-final 1 vs Quarter-final 2
Quarter-final 3 vs Quarter-final 4
See all the results from the Conference League here.
Key dates for the 25/26 UEFA Conference League
League Phase first matchday: October 2nd
League Phase last matchday: December 18th
Draw for knockout playoffs: January 16th, 2026
Knockout playoffs: February 19th (first legs), February 26th (second legs)
Final draw (for Round of 16 and beyond): February 27th, 2026
Round of 16: March 12th (first legs), March 19th (second legs)
Quarter-finals: April 9th (first legs), April 16th (second legs)
Semi-finals: April 30th (first legs), May 7th (second legs)
Final: May 27th
When & where is the 25/26 Conference League final
The Conference League final will be played at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig, Germany, on Wednesday, May 27th, 2026. The stadium has a capacity of 47,800 - it is the largest stadium in Eastern Germany. Due to UEFA sponsorship regulations, the stadium is known as the 'RB Arena' for European matches.
The winners of the final will enter the League Phase of the 2026/27 Europa League, unless they have independently qualified for the Champions League.
UEFA Conference League format explained
Ahead of last season, there was a big overhaul of UEFA’s cup competitions. Gone are the days of a group phase with pools - a 36-team 'League Phase' has replaced that format across the competitions.
This season in the Conference League, just like last, each of the 36 teams plays six matches in the League Phase (unlike in the Champions League and Europa League, where teams play eight).
The top eight at the end of the league phase automatically qualify for the round of 16, while the bottom eight are eliminated. Meanwhile, the teams that finished between ninth and 24th go into the knockout playoff round to determine which of the further eight will complete the round of 16.
The final draw for the knockout stages takes place after the knockout playoff round.
The round of 16 sees the top eight (seeded) teams drawn against the other (unseeded) teams. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final follow as per typical cup competitions.