2025-26 UWCL Qualifying Rounds
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[ 2025-26: Entry | Rds 1 & 2 | Main Stage | Knockout | Europa Cup | Assoc Coeffs | Money ]
The 2025-26 UEFA Women's Champions League consists of three phases: qualifying rounds, a league stage, and the knockout round. Nine teams have automatic berths to the main league stage: the champions of the top six associations, the runners-up of the top two associations, and the defending champions. The other nine spots in the league stage are determined by three qualifying rounds.
There are two branches for the qualifying rounds: the Champions' Path, awarding four berths among the remaining national champions; and the League Path, awarding five berths to second and third-place teams from the top 17 nations.
Entry points for teams are indicated by this chart:
| Rank | Associations | 1st | 2nd | 3rd
|
|---|
| 1 | France | Main | Main | L3
|
| 2 | Germany
|
| 3 | Spain | L3
|
| 4 | England | L2
|
| 5 | Portugal
|
| 6 | Italy | L2
|
| 7 | Sweden | C2
|
| 8-17 | CZE, NED, DEN, NOR,
AUT, UKR, BLR,
ISL, SCO, KAZ
|
| 18-28 | SUI, SRB, ALB, CYP,
BEL, RUS, FIN, BIH,
HUN, ROU, SVN
|
| 29+ | All other associations | C1
|
In addition, the defending champions enter in the Main Stage, and the holders of the Europa Cup would enter in round C3.
These starting locations will be adjusted based on vacancies.
Rebalancing
Each empty space in the starting grid is filled via procedures spelled out by UEFA in the competition regulations. For a summary of how this was applied in the 2025-26 season, see the Entries page.
Champions' Path
Round 1
Round 1 consists of four-team mini-tournaments held at a single site. As designed, there are six groups, but because of rebalancing, there may be only five groups.
The entrants are seeded based on their 2025 club coefficient, with the top 12 (or possibly 10) being seeded and the remainder unseeded. Each group will have two seeded teams and two unseeded teams. If necessary, one or two groups will have only one unseeded team.
For each group with four teams, there are two semifinals (each featuring a seeded team and an unseeded team), a third-place game, and a final. Only the winning team advances to Round 2, and all other teams' European seasons are over. In any group with three teams, the highest-ranked seeded team gets a bye to the final, while the other two teams play the semifinal.
Qualified teams, organized by coefficient
| Seeded Teams | Unseeded Teams
|
|---|
| Team | Assoc | Coeff | Team | Assoc | Coeff
|
|---|
| Gintra | LTU | 9
|
| Katowice | POL | 1.8
|
| Racing Union | LUX | 7.5 | NSI | FRO | 1.0
|
| Flora | EST | 6 | Neftci | AZE | 1
|
| Kiryat Gat | ISR | 6 | Pyunik | ARM | 1
|
| Lanchkhuti | GEO | 5.5 | Cliftonville | NIR | 1.2
|
| Anenii Noi | MDA | 5.5 | Riga FC | LVA | 1.3
|
| NSA Sofia | BUL | 4.5 | Swieqi United | MLT | 1.5
|
| Mitrovica | KOS | 4 | Athlone Town | IRL | 1.6
|
| Spartak Myjava | SVK | 4 | AEK Athens | GRE | 1.8
|
| Ljuboten | MKD | 3.5
|
| Agram | CRO | 2.1
|
| Cardiff City | WAL | 2
|
The teams will be drawn into five or six groups, as follows:
| Semifinals | | Final | Pts |
|---|
| Seeded 1 | # | | Winner A | # | |
| Unseeded 1 | # | | Winner B | # | |
| Group C1 at TBD | Third place | Pts |
| Seeded 2 | # | | Loser A | # | |
| Unseeded 2 | # | | Loser B | # | |
Round 2
Round 2 also consists of four-team mini-tournaments held at a single site. There are 28 teams (22 of which start here and 6 survivors from C1) drawn into seven groups.
The entrants are seeded based on their 2025 club coefficient, with the top 14 being seeded and the remainder unseeded. Each group will have two seeded teams and two unseeded teams.
For each group, there are two semifinals (each featuring a seeded team and an unseeded team), a third-place game, and a final. The winners advance to Round 3. Second and third place teams transfer to the Women's Europa Cup, beginning in Round 2 and Round 1 respectively. Fourth place teams are eliminated from European play completely.
Qualified teams, organized by coefficient
No Round 1 team has a coefficient high enough to be seeded.
| Seeded Teams | Unseeded Teams
|
|---|
| Team | Assoc | Coeff | Team | Assoc | Coeff
|
|---|
| St. Polten | AUT | 27
|
| Slavia Praha | CZE | 24 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| Rosengard | SWE | 24 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| Twente | NED | 16 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| Valerenga | NOR | 16 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| Vorskla Poltava | UKR | 14 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| BIIK Shymkent | KAZ | 13.5 | Round 1 winners | N/A | ≤7.5
|
| Vllaznia | ALB | 13 | Katowice | POL | 1.8
|
| Apollon Ladies | CYP | 12 | Farul Constanta | ROU | 2
|
| Mura | SVN | 11 | HJK | FIN | 2.1
|
| SFK 2000 | BIH | 10 | OHL Leuven | BEL | 2.2
|
| Gintra | LTU | 9 | Crvena Zvezda | SRB | 2.3
|
| Ferencvaros | HUN | 9 | Hibernian | SCO | 2.4
|
| Fortuna | DEN | 9 | YB Frauen | SUI | 2.85
|
| Breidablik | ISL | 8.5 | Dinamo Minsk | BLR | 7
|
Round 3
Round 3 consists of home-and-away series. Eight teams compete in this stage. One team begins here, St. Polten of Austria, filling the vacancy created by the absence of a UWEC champion from last season. They are joined by the seven winners of round C2. The winners advance to the League Stage, while the losers fall to the second qualifying round of the Europa Cup.
League Path
Round 2
The League Path does not have a Round 1. Round 2 consists of four-team mini-tournaments held at a single site. The 16 entrants are seeded based on their 2025 club coefficient, with the top 8 being seeded and the remainder unseeded. Four groups will be drawn, each with two seeded teams and two unseeded teams.
For each group, there are two semifinals (each featuring a seeded team and an unseeded team), a third-place game, and a final. The winning team advances to Round 3. As with the Champions' Path, second and third place teams transfer to the Women's Europa Cup, beginning in Round 2 and Round 1 respectively. Fourth place teams are eliminated from European play completely.
Qualified teams, organized by coefficient
| Seeded Teams | Unseeded Teams
|
|---|
| Hacken | SWE | 28
|
| Roma | ITA | 32 | Aktobe | KAZ | 1.95
|
| Sparta Praha | CZE | 21 | Austria Wien | AUT | 4.15
|
| Brann | NOR | 17 | PSV | NED | 5
|
| Manchester United | ENG | 13.69 | Braga | POR | 6.6
|
| Valur | ISL | 11.5 | Metalist 1925 | UKR | 7
|
| FC Minsk | BLR | 10.5 | Inter Milan | ITA | 7.6
|
| Glasgow City | SCO | 10 | | |
|
| | |
|
The teams will be drawn into four groups.
Round 3
Round 3 consists of home-and-away series. Ten teams compete in this stage. Six teams begin at this stage, the runner-ups of the associations 3-5 and the third-place teams from the top three associations. They are joined by the four winners of round two. The winners advance to the League Stage, while the losers fall to the second qualifying round of the Europa Cup.
| Seeded Teams | Unseeded Teams
|
|---|
| Team | Assoc | Coeff | Team | Assoc | Coeff
|
|---|
| Arsenal | ENG | 53+ | Sporting Lisbon | POR | 6.6
|
| Real Madrid | ESP | 43
|
Seeding pending: Paris FC (FRA) 14, Atletico Madrid (ESP) 13.39+, Eintracht Frankfurt (GER) 12.5, four winners of Round L2.