The 2025/26 UEFA Conference League is well underway, with the league phase now already over. Below is everything you need to know about who is still alive, when the next draw is and all the key dates for the season.
The Conference League draws & where to watch
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 next draw in the Conference League will take place on January 16th, and it is for the knockout playoffs, which involve the teams who finished the league phase in places ninth to 24th.
The draws for the round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final will be held on February 27th.
You will be able to watch the draws live on UEFA.com.
The following 24 sides are still alive in the 25/26 Conference League (in finishing order):
Top Eight: 1. Strasbourg (FRA), 2. Rakow (POL), 3. AEK Athens (GRE), 4. Sparta Prague (CZE), 5. Rayo Vallecano (ESP), 6. Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR), 7. Mainz (GER) 8. AEK Larnaca (CYP)
Ninth to 24th: 9. Lausanne (SUI), 10. Crystal Palace (ENG), 11. Lech Poznan (POL), 12. Samsunspor (TUR), 13. Celje (SLO), 14. AZ (NED), 15. Fiorentina (ITA), 16. Rijeka (CRO), 17. Jagiellonia (POL), 18. Omonia (CYP), 19. Noah (ARM), 20, Drita (KOS), 21. KuPS (FIN), 22. Shkendija (MKD), 23. Zrinjski (BIH), 24. Sigma Olomouc (CZE)
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 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 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.
