Seven Already In

Arsenal and Manchester City have sealed their spots in the 2026-27 UEFA Champions League, joining five other European clubs who have already booked their places in next season's elite competition.

Both English clubs have accumulated enough Premier League points to guarantee a top-five finish, which is all they need. England earns an extra Champions League berth next season — five spots instead of the usual four — thanks to English clubs' strong performance in UEFA competitions this term.

Who Has Already Made It?

Alongside Arsenal and City, Inter Milan have locked in a top-four Serie A finish, while Barcelona and Real Madrid have done the same in La Liga. Bayern Munich and PSV have gone one better, clinching their national titles — the Germany and Netherlands championships respectively — to guarantee their places.

In total, 36 teams will compete in next season's Champions League group phase. Of those, 29 will be confirmed before the current season ends, with the remaining seven coming through qualifying rounds early in the 2026-27 campaign.

How Are Places allocated?

UEFA distributes Champions League spots based on its association rankings over the five-year window ending two seasons before the relevant campaign. For 2026-27, that means rankings from the 2020-21 through 2024-25 seasons are used.

England, Italy, Spain, and Germany rank first through fourth, meaning their top four clubs all qualify directly. France (5th) sends three teams straight through, with fourth place entering the third qualifying round. Netherlands (6th) qualifies its top two, with third place dropping into qualifying.

Nations ranked 7th to 10th — Portugal, Belgium, Czech Republic, and Turkey — receive two Champions League spots each. League winners go directly into the league phase, while runners-up enter qualifying at various stages.

The Elite Performance and Title-holder spots

An additional Elite Performance spot (EPS) is still up for grabs, with only Germany, Spain, and Portugal mathematically in the running for it.

There's also a potential title-holder replacement spot: if this season's Champions League winner has already qualified through their domestic league, UEFA re-awards that spot to the highest-ranked club by coefficient that hasn't yet qualified directly. Currently, Rangers are well-placed to benefit from that scenario, provided Olympic don't overhaul Greek Super League leaders AEK Athens.

What It All means

For African football fans, the list of confirmed teams includes clubs that house some of the continent's biggest stars. Inter Milan's qualification is great news for André Onana, while Real Madrid and Barcelona competing again means more big stages for African talents across La Liga.

With several spots still to be decided, the race for Champions League football is heating up across Europe's top leagues.