The Champions League field is almost set. Twenty-nine soccer clubs have already punched their tickets to the expanded 36-team league phase for 2026/27, which leaves just seven places up for grabs — and two-legged play-offs standing between a handful of hopeful clubs and a seat among Europe’s elite, the last stop before the league phase draw completes the field.
First legs are split across two nights. Tuesday, August 18 brings Levski Sofia vs. AEK Athens, Dinamo Zagreb vs. Viking, and Fenerbahçe vs. Lyon. Wednesday follows with Hapoel Be’er Sheva vs. Sabah, Celtic vs. LASK, Slovan Bratislava vs. Celje, and NEC Nijmegen vs. Bodø/Glimt. Return legs go next week, and whoever comes out on top joins the league-phase draw.
GettyParis Saint-Germain lift the UEFA Champions League trophy 2025/2026
Pedigree Clubs Face Off Against First-Timers
Some of these clubs know exactly what this stage feels like. Celtic have a European Cup on the shelf and no shortage of group-stage experience. Lyon have made multiple semi-finals. Dinamo Zagreb, Fenerbahçe, AEK Athens, Levski Sofia, Slovan Bratislava and Bodø/Glimt have all been here before, in one form of the group or league phase or another.
The more compelling stories, though, belong to the six clubs still chasing their first taste of the competition’s modern group stage, the version that’s been in existance since the 1992/93 season rebrand. Viking FK have knocked on the door in European Cup and Champions League qualifying more than once but never gotten through, despite being one of Norway’s most consistent European entrants. Hapoel Be’er Sheva, a club with a proud history in Israeli football, made it as far as the play-offs back in 2016/17 and came up short. Sabah, a relatively young club from Baku, are newcomers to UEFA competition altogether and will be making their Champions League debut this season if they advance. NEC Nijmegen, one of the Netherlands’ older football institutions, have history in the old Cup Winners’ Cup and UEFA Cup, but the Champions League group stage has always eluded them. NK Celje, Slovenia’s reigning champions, have pushed through the early qualifying rounds in recent years without ever breaking through to the main event. And Austria’s LASK, long a fixture near the top of the Austrian Bundesliga, got to the play-offs in 2019/20 only to fall at the last hurdle.
For any of these six clubs, winning this week would be a genuine milestone — not just the financial windfall that comes with it, but a real chance to measure themselves against Europe’s best on a regular basis. History will be on the line over the next eight days, and for whichever clubs manage it, there will be plenty of proud fans back home celebrating a moment years in the making.
How to Watch the Play-Off Round
Paramount+ holds the exclusive English-language U.S. rights to every Champions League match this season, streaming all seven first legs live. TUDN and ViX carry the Spanish-language broadcasts for this stage of the competition, with certain matches also available on Amazon Prime Video and DAZN. Telemundo will take over the Spanish-language rights starting with the 2027-28 season, but for now, the play-off round remains part of Univision and TUDN’s coverage.
The return legs follow next Tuesday and Wednesday, after which the seven successful sides will discover their league-phase opponents in the draw, completing the 36-team field for the 2026/27 Champions League season.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Champions League Playoff Round Kicks Off August 18 appeared first on HEAVY.