UEFA Europa League third qualifying round draw

The 2025/26 UEFA Europa League third qualifying round draw was held at 13:00 CET on Monday 21 July at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland. The two-legged ties will take place on 7 and 14 August 2025.

2025/26 Europa League third qualifying round draw

Champions Path

Lincoln Red Imps FC (GIB)/FK Crvena Zvezda (SRB) vs FC Noah (ARM)/Ferencvárosi TC (HUN)
HNK Rijeka (CRO)/PFC Ludogorets 1945 (BUL) vs Shelbourne FC (IRL)/Qarabağ FK (AZE)
FC RFS (LVA)/Malmö FF (SWE) vs KuPS Kuopio (FIN)/FC Kairat Almaty (KAZ)

Hamrun Spartans F.C. (MLT)/FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR) vs Pafos FC (CYP)/Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (ISR)
ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK)/HŠK Zrinjski Mostar (BIH) vs KKS Lech Poznań (POL)/Breidablik (ISL)
KF Shkëndija (MKD)/Fotbal Club FCSB (ROU) vs F.C. Copenhagen (DEN)/FC Drita (KOS)

Main Path

Celje (SVN)/AEK Larnaca FC (CYP) vs FC Baník Ostrava (CZE)/Legia Warszawa (POL)
Fredrikstad FK (NOR) vs FC Midtjylland (DEN)/Hibernian F.C. (SCO)
FC Lugano (SUI)/CFR 1907 Cluj (ROU) vs PFC Levski Sofia (BUL)/SC Braga
PAOK FC (GRE) vs Wolfsberger AC (AUT)

FC Viktoria Plzeň (CZE)/Servette FC (SUI) vs FC Sheriff Tiraspol (MDA)/FC Utrecht (NED)
RSC Anderlecht (BEL)/BK Häcken (SWE) vs SK Brann (NOR)/FC Salzburg (AUT)
Rangers FC (SCO)/Panathinaikos FC (GRE) vs Beşiktaş JK (TUR)/FC Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)

Seeded teams in bold.

Match dates and kick-off times to be announced by 25 July 2025 (first and second leg).

Draw procedure

CHAMPIONS PATH
Number of teams involved: 12 (12 pairings coming from the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round)
Number of seeded teams: 6
Number of matches: 2 x 6

MAIN PATH
Number of teams involved: 14 (three directly, eight pairings from the second qualifying round and three pairings from the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round League Path)
Number of seeded teams: 7
Number of matches: 2 x 7

Based on Article 14 of the UEFA Europa League Regulations (UEL Regulations) the following draw procedure was adopted by the UEFA Club Competitions Committee. Furthermore, the following paragraphs of the UEL 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 opponent 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 concerned are not known at the time of the draw, the coefficients of the two clubs involved in the undecided tie are used for the purposes of the draw. For the club advancing to the next round of the competition as winners of the tie, the coefficient of the club with the higher coefficient of the two clubs involved is used for the purposes of the draw. For the other club, which is fed into the relevant round of the competition from another competition, the lower coefficient of the two clubs in the pairing of the other competition 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. Clubs from the same association cannot be drawn against each other.

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 and 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 12 pairings (12 pairings of teams from the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round, indicated for the purposes of this draw as Pairing 1 to 12), were divided into two groups of six pairings, with an equal number of seeded and unseeded pairings in each group.

As the teams entering the competition 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 lower coefficient of the two teams involved in each undecided UEFA Champions League previous qualifying round tie was used for the seeding for the purposes of the draw.

Groupings (Champions Path)

Group 1
Seeded
Pairing 1: HNK Rijeka (CRO) vs PFC Ludogorets 1945 (BUL)
Pairing 2: FC RFS (LVA) vs Malmö FF (SWE)
Pairing 3: Lincoln Red Imps FC (GIB) vs FK Crvena Zvezda (SRB)

Unseeded
Pairing 4: KuPS Kuopio (FIN) vs FC Kairat Almaty (KAZ)
Pairing 5: FC Noah (ARM) vs Ferencvárosi TC (HUN)
Pairing 6: Shelbourne FC (IRL) vs Qarabağ FK (AZE)

Group 2
Seeded
Pairing 7: Pafos FC (CYP) vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (ISR)
Pairing 8: ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK) vs HŠK Zrinjski Mostar (BIH)
Pairing 9: F.C. Copenhagen (DEN) vs FC Drita (KOS)

Unseeded
Pairing 10: KKS Lech Poznań (POL) vs Breidablik (ISL)
Pairing 11: KF Shkëndija (MKD) vs Fotbal Club FCSB (ROU)
Pairing 12: Hamrun Spartans F.C. (MLT) vs FC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)

Draw procedure (Champions Path)

Three bowls were prepared for the draw, with the balls containing the names of the seeded and unseeded 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. The first pairing then 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 then 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 group.

Draw system (Main Path)

The 14 teams (three that enter the competition at this stage, the eight winners of the competition's second qualifying round main path ties, indicated for the purpose of this draw as Winners of Pairing 1 to 8, and three pairings from the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round League Path indicated for the purpose of this draw as Pairing 1 to 3) were divided into one group of eight teams and/or pairings (Group 1) and one group of six teams and/or pairings (Group 2), with an equal number of seeded and unseeded teams and/or pairings in each group.

As the teams qualifying from the previous qualifying round of the UEFA Europa 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 Europa League had a coefficient that would entitle it to be seeded for the current draw, that pairing was seeded for this draw.

As the teams entering the competition 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 lower coefficient of the two teams involved in each undecided UEFA Champions League previous qualifying round tie was used for the seeding for the purposes of the draw.

Groupings (Main Path)

Group 1
Seeded
Winners of Pairing 1: PFC Levski Sofia (BUL) vs SC Braga
PAOK FC (GRE)
Winners of Pairing 2: FC Midtjylland (DEN) vs Hibernian F.C. (SCO)
Winners of Pairing 3: FC Baník Ostrava (CZE) vs Legia Warszawa (POL)

Unseeded
Winners of Pairing 4: FC Lugano (SUI) vs CFR 1907 Cluj (ROU)
Winners of Pairing 5: Celje (SVN) vs AEK Larnaca FC (CYP)
Wolfsberger AC (AUT)
Fredrikstad FK (NOR)

Group 2
Seeded
Winners of Pairing 6: Beşiktaş JK (TUR) vs FC Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
Winners of Pairing 7: RSC Anderlecht (BEL) vs BK Häcken (SWE)
Winners of Pairing 8: FC Sheriff Tiraspol (MDA) vs FC Utrecht (NED)

Unseeded
Pairing 1: Rangers FC (SCO) vs Panathinaikos FC (GRE)
Pairing 2: FC Viktoria Plzeň (CZE) vs Servette FC (SUI)
Pairing 3: SK Brann (NOR) vs FC Salzburg (AUT)

Draw Procedure (Main 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. The first team and/or pairing then 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 and/or pairing drawn.

The process was then 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 group.

Draw explanation

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

Calendar elaboration

The following paragraphs of the UEL 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 matches in the qualifying phase and the play-offs are fixed by the home clubs in consultation with their respective associations and must be confirmed to the UEFA administration by the deadline set by the UEFA administration. 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 on the day after the draw.