Second qualifying round draw

The 2025/26 UEFA Champions League second qualifying round draw was held at 12:00 CET on 18 June at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland. The two-legged ties will take place on 22/23 and 29/30 July 2025.

2025/26 Champions League second qualifying round draw

Champions Path

FCI Levadia Tallinn (EST) / FC RFS (LVA) vs FC Iberia 1999 Tbilisi (GEO) / Malmö FF (SWE)
FK Žalgiris (LTU) / Hamrun Spartans FC (MLT) vs FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Pafos FC (CYP) vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (ISR)
Víkingur (FRO) / Lincoln Red Imps FC (GIB) vs FK Crvena Zvezda (SRB)

FC Noah (ARM) / FK Budućnost Podgorica (MNE) vs Ferencvárosi TC (HUN)
KKS Lech Poznań (POL) vs KF Egnatia (ALB) / Breidablik (ISL)
FC Copenhagen (DEN) vs FC Drita (KOS) / FC Differdange 03 (LUX)
HNK Rijeka (CRO) vs PFC Ludogorets 1945 (BUL) / FC Dinamo-Minsk (BLR)

The New Saints FC (WAL) / KF Shkëndija (MKD) vs Fotbal Club FCSB (ROU) / Inter Club d'Escaldes (AND)
ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK) vs FC Virtus AC 1964 (SMR) / HŠK Zrinjski Mostar (BIH)
Shelbourne FC (IRL) / Linfield FC (NIR) vs Qarabağ FK (AZE)
KuPS Kuopio (FIN) / FC Milsami Orhei (MDA) vs NK Olimpija Ljubljana (SVN) / FC Kairat Almaty (KAZ)

League Path

SK Brann (NOR) vs FC Salzburg (AUT)
FC Viktoria Plzeň (CZE) vs Servette FC (SUI)
Rangers FC (SCO) vs Panathinaikos FC (GRE)

Seeded teams in bold.

Match dates and kick-off times to be announced by 23 June 2025 (first and second leg)

Draw procedure

CHAMPIONS PATH
Number of teams involved: 24 (ten directly and 14 through the first qualifying round)
Number of seeded teams: 12
Number of matches: 2 x 12

LEAGUE PATH
Number of teams involved: 6
Number of seeded teams: 3
Number of matches: 2 x 3

Based on Article 14 of the UEFA Champions League Regulations (UCL Regulations) the following draw procedure was adopted by the UEFA Club Competitions Committee. Furthermore, the following paragraphs of the UCL Regulations were applicable to the draw.

Match system

15.01: The qualifying phase and play-offs follow the knockout system, whereby each team plays each opponents twice, in home and away matches. The team that scores the greater aggregate of goals in the two matches qualifies for the relevant round or stage (as applicable). In the event that the two teams score the same number of goals across the two matches, Article 21 applies.

Draw system and conditions

14.01: A draw between the same number of seeded and unseeded clubs determines the ties for the qualifying phase and play-offs. Clubs are seeded for these draws in accordance with the club coefficient rankings established at the beginning of the season (see Annex D) and with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. If, for any reason, any of the participants in the rounds in question are not known at the time of the draw, the coefficient of the club with the higher coefficient of the two clubs involved in an undecided tie is used for the purposes of the draw.

14.02: The UEFA administration may form groups for the draw in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.

14.03: A draw is conducted to determine the ties of each match and which team plays the first leg match at home.

In accordance with the relevant decisions of the UEFA Executive Committee, teams from the following associations may not be drawn against each other:

Armenia – Azerbaijan
Gibraltar – Spain
Kosovo – Bosnia-Herzegovina
Kosovo – Serbia
Kosovo – Russia*
Ukraine – Russia*
Ukraine – Belarus

*All teams from Russia are suspended until further notice by the decision of the Executive Committee of 28 February 2022, and as confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on 15 July 2022.

Draw system (Champions Path)

The 24 teams were divided into three groups of eight teams with an equal number of seeded and unseeded teams and/or pairings. For the purpose of this draw the 14 winners of the first qualifying round ties were called Winners of Pairing 1 to 14.

As the teams qualifying from the previous qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League were not known at the time of the draw, the coefficient of the team with the higher coefficient of the two teams involved in each undecided tie was used for the seeding for the purposes of the draw. Therefore, if a team in a tie of the previous qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League had a coefficient that would entitle it to be seeded for the current draw, that pairing was seeded for this draw.

Groupings

Group 1
Seeded
FK Crvena Zvezda (SRB)
Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (ISR)
FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Winners of Pairing 1: FC Iberia 1999 Tbilisi (GEO) vs Malmö FF (SWE)

Unseeded
Winners of Pairing 2: FK Žalgiris (LTU) vs Hamrun Spartans FC (MLT)
Pafos FC (CYP)
Winners of Pairing 3: FCI Levadia Tallinn (EST) vs FC RFS (LVA)
Winners of Pairing 4: Víkingur (FRO) vs Lincoln Red Imps FC (GIB)

Group 2
Seeded
FC Copenhagen (DEN)
Ferencvárosi TC (HUN)
Winners of Pairing 5: PFC Ludogorets 1945 (BUL) vs FC Dinamo-Minsk (BLR)
KKS Lech Poznań (POL)

Unseeded
HNK Rijeka (CRO)
Winners of Pairing 6: FC Drita (KOS) vs FC Differdange 03 (LUX)
Winners of Pairing 7: KF Egnatia (ALB) vs Breidablik (ISL)
Winners of Pairing 8: FC Noah (ARM) vs FK Budućnost Podgorica (MNE)

Group 3
Seeded
ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK)
Qarabağ FK (AZE)
Winners of Pairing 9: Fotbal Club FCSB (ROU) vs Inter Club d'Escaldes (AND)
Winners of Pairing 10: NK Olimpija Ljubljana (SVN) vs FC Kairat Almaty (KAZ)

Unseeded
Winners of Pairing 11: FC Virtus AC 1964 (SMR) vs HŠK Zrinjski Mostar (BIH)
Winners of Pairing 12: KuPS Kuopio (FIN) vs FC Milsami Orhei (MDA)
Winners of Pairing 13: The New Saints FC (WAL) vs KF Shkëndija (MKD)
Winners of Pairing 14: Shelbourne FC (IRL) vs Linfield FC (NIR)

Draw procedure (Champions Path)

Three bowls were prepared for the draw, with the balls containing the names of the seeded and unseeded teams and/or pairings from Group 1 placed in the corresponding marked bowls.

One ball was then taken from each of these bowls and placed in the third empty central bowl, where they were shuffled. One ball was taken from the central bowl and opened to display the team. This team was considered the home team for the first leg of the first tie, which they will play against the second team drawn from this bowl.

The process was repeated with the remaining balls to complete all the ties from Group 1. The same procedure was then carried out to determine the ties for the remaining groups.

Draw system (League Path)

The six teams were divided equally into three seeded and three unseeded teams.

Groupings

Seeded
Rangers FC (SCO)
FC Salzburg (AUT)
FC Viktoria Plzeň (CZE)

Unseeded
Panathinaikos FC (GRE)
Servette FC (SUI)
SK Brann (NOR)

Draw procedure (League Path)

Three bowls were prepared for the draw, with the balls containing the names of the seeded and unseeded teams placed in the corresponding marked bowls.

One ball was taken from each of these bowls and placed in the third empty central bowl, where they were shuffled. The first team drawn from this bowl was considered the home team for the first leg of the first tie, which they will play against the second team drawn.

The process was repeated with the remaining balls to complete all the ties.

Draw explanation

A video explaining the draw procedure was shown prior to the draw.

Calendar elaboration

The following paragraphs of the UCL Regulations are applicable to the match calendar.

24.01: The stadiums, dates (in accordance with the calendar in Annex C) and kick-off times for all qualifying matches are fixed by the home clubs in consultation with their respective associations and must be confirmed to the UEFA administration by the set deadline. The UEFA administration may alter or confirm dates and kick-off times in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.

24.02: If two or more clubs from the same city, within a radius of 50km of each other and/or playing in the same stadium, take part in any of the UEFA club competitions, and if the association and the clubs concerned explicitly declare when entering the clubs that their matches cannot be played on the same day or on consecutive days, the UEFA administration may alter or confirm dates and kick-off times in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.

24.03: The UEFA administration decides on match dates and fixture reversals on a case-by-case basis and in accordance with the applicable principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. In any case, the UEFA administration reserves the right to impose a match date if the circumstances so require.

Any changes of date and fixture reversals will be communicated in writing to the clubs and their respective associations.