Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
England and Spain have each secured a European Performance Spot for the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League league phase by finishing first and second in the 2025/26 association club coefficients. This ranking is calculated as the total club coefficient points divided by the number of clubs from each association, reflecting the best collective performance by their clubs in UEFA men's competitions.
As a result, each association will receive one automatic league phase place for the next-highest ranked club in their domestic league that has not already qualified directly. Currently, Aston Villa in England and Real Betis in Spain would claim these spots based on their projected fifth-place finishes.
The 2026/27 UEFA Champions League league phase will feature 36 teams, including the winners of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, qualified clubs from top European leagues, and qualifiers from various rounds. The European Performance Spots add two additional places to this total.
The allocation of spots is as follows: one each for the winners of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League and Europa League, four each for England, Italy, Spain, and Germany, three for France, two for the Netherlands, and one each for Portugal, Belgium, Czechia, and Türkiye, alongside the two European Performance Spots and seven spots from qualifying rounds.