Decisive Champions League Draw: 7 Pairings Confirmed

The draw for the most intense stage of the 2026/27 Champions League qualifiers has taken place. Held on August 3 in Nyon, Switzerland, the ceremony determined the seven play-off pairings leading to the league phase.

Some participants are still unknown: the first legs of the third qualifying round will be played on August 4–5, and the return legs on August 11. Therefore, several team names in the draw results are indicated with a "/" symbol.

Kairat's path leads to AEK

Kazakhstan's Kairat must first overcome Bulgaria's Levski in the third qualifying round. The winner of this pairing will face Greek club AEK in the play-offs.

Kairat's initial task is not easy: the first leg will be held in Sofia on August 4, and the return leg in Almaty on August 11. Only the team that prevails over two legs will battle AEK for a spot in the league phase.

Sabah also has a historic opportunity

Azerbaijan's Sabah will test their strength against Denmark's Aarhus in the third round. The winner of this clash will play against the victors of the Hapoel Be'er Sheva — Red Star Belgrade tie in the play-offs.

Thus, Sabah has two hurdles left to reach the main stage of the Champions League: they must first defeat the Danish club, and then overcome the champion of Israel or Serbia.

Celtic's opponent is already known directly

One of the clearest pairings in the draw is the clash between Celtic and LASK. Both clubs skip the third qualifying round and can focus their preparations directly on the play-off matches.

The Scottish club failed to get past Kairat at this exact stage last season. Now, Celtic will fight against the Austrian representative to ensure last year's failure is not repeated.

All pairings on the Champions Path

Five play-off pairings were formed in the path featuring national champions:

Six winners will emerge from the third round in this path, and four more teams will join directly in the play-offs. As a result, five clubs will secure a spot in the league phase.

Big names could clash on the League Path

A separate league path has been established for clubs that qualified not by winning their domestic championship, but through high finishes.

The following pairings were formed in this path:

This path is generating great interest, especially with the potential involvement of Fenerbahçe, Lyon, and Sparta Prague. However, they must first defeat their third-round opponents to reach the play-offs.

How are the seven spots distributed?

The 2026/27 Champions League league phase will feature 36 teams. 29 of them have qualified directly, while the remaining seven places will be filled via qualifying play-offs.

• From the Champions Path — 5 teams;

• From the League Path — 2 teams.

Clubs defeated in the play-offs will not miss out on European competition. They will be transferred directly to the UEFA Europa League league phase.

When will the decisive matches take place?

The play-off stage will be played in a home-and-away format:

The team with the aggregate lead over two legs advances to the Champions League league phase.

The main intrigue lies ahead

The draw has set the play-off paths, but out of the seven pairings, only the Celtic — LASK tie features both participants confirmed. At least one side of the remaining six clashes will be known after the third qualifying round.

Central Asia and Azerbaijani fans will focus mainly on Kairat and Sabah. If both clubs get past their next hurdles, they will come very close to the league phase of Europe's premier club competition.

Which of Kairat or Sabah do you think is closer to reaching the Champions League league phase? Leave your thoughts in the comments and share the article with fellow sports fans on Telegram or other social networks!