Champions League Playoff Round: All Seven Pairings Are Now Confirmed
The last obstacle before the playoff round is finally clear. After the third qualifying round wrapped up on August 11, all seven ties for the 2026/27 Champions League playoff round are confirmed — and there were already a couple of genuine shocks along the way.
Lyon Survive a Scare, Olympiacos Don't
Lyon looked in real trouble after losing the first leg 2-1 away to Sparta Prague, but hit back with a 3-0 win at home to seal a 4-2 aggregate victory and a playoff spot in the League Path — a much-needed result for a club still rebuilding its European standing.
Olympiacos weren't so fortunate. After a goalless first leg, NEC Nijmegen won 2-1 after extra time in the second leg to eliminate the Greek club on a 2-1 aggregate — one of the biggest surprises of the qualifying rounds, and a blow for a side that had genuine Champions League ambitions this season.
Union Saint-Gilloise's Run Ends in a Thriller
Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise produced one of the qualifying rounds' best matches, drawing 3-3 with Bodø/Glimt in normal time before the Norwegian side won 3-2 in extra time for a 6-5 aggregate victory — 11 goals across the tie. Andreas Helmersen's 117th-minute winner ended Union's hopes of a first-ever Champions League league-phase appearance.
Elsewhere, Dinamo Zagreb cruised, winning 7-1 on aggregate over Kauno Žalgiris after a 5-0 first leg, while Fenerbahçe eased past Sturm Graz 3-0 on aggregate to keep their return to Europe's top table on track.
The Seven Confirmed Ties
Champions Path: AEK Athens vs. Levski Sofia; Celtic vs. LASK; Dinamo Zagreb vs. Viking; Slovan Bratislava vs. Celje; Hapoel Be'er-Sheva vs. Sabah.
League Path: Fenerbahçe vs. Lyon; NEC Nijmegen vs. Bodø/Glimt.
What's Next
First legs are played August 18-19, with the return legs on August 25-26. The seven winners join the 29 clubs already confirmed for the league phase, with Pots 3 and 4 only finalized once these ties are done.
The full 36-club field is set in stone the moment the last playoff tie ends — just one day before the league phase draw in Monaco on August 27.