Default distribution (from 2015–16)
Starting with the 2015–16 edition, the winners of the UEFA Europa League will be entered into the Champions League, initially at the level of the playoff round, ensuring group stage participation in either competition. The maximum number of teams that an association can field in the tournament has also been increased from four to five.[1]
Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from previous round | ||
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First qualifying round (8 teams) |
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Second qualifying round (34 teams) |
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Third qualifying round | Champions (20 teams) |
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Non-champions (10 teams) |
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Play-off round | Champions (10 teams) |
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Non-champions (10 teams) |
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Group stage (32 teams) |
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Knockout phase (16 teams) |
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- ^UEL : The Europa League champion may be promoted into the group stage if the Champions League champion qualifies for the group stage through their domestic competition. If the Champions League champion comes from an association ranked thirteenth or lower and they did not qualify for the non-champions route based on their domestic performance, the Europa League champion will enter the play-off round for champions instead. The access list will be adjusted accordingly to ensure a maximum of ten teams in each stream’s play-off round.
- ^UCL : If the Champions League and Europa League champions are from the same association ranked 1st–3rd and neither qualify for the Champions League through their domestic competition, the fourth-placed team will qualify for the Europa League instead.