On Thursday, October 2, the first round of the main stage of the 2025/26 UEFA Europa Conference League will kick off. Ukrainian football will be represented in the tournament by two clubs – Kyiv’s Dynamo and Donetsk’s Shakhtar. In their opening matches, Dynamo will face England’s Crystal Palace, while Shakhtar will travel to play against Scotland’s Aberdeen, reports Baltimore Chronicle.
The schedule for the first round on October 2 is as follows: at 19:45 Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine) vs. Crystal Palace (England); Zrinjski (Bosnia and Herzegovina) vs. Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar); KuPS (Finland) vs. Drita (Kosovo); Lech (Poland) vs. Rapid Wien (Austria); Lausanne (Switzerland) vs. Breiðablik (Iceland); Noah (Armenia) vs. Rijeka (Croatia); Omonia (Cyprus) vs. Mainz (Germany); Rayo Vallecano (Spain) vs. Shkëndija (North Macedonia); Jagiellonia (Poland) vs. Hamrun Spartans (Malta).
At 22:00, Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) will start its group stage campaign against Aberdeen (Scotland). Other matches scheduled at the same time include AEK Larnaca (Cyprus) vs. AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands); Legia Warsaw (Poland) vs. Samsunspor (Turkey); Raków (Poland) vs. Universitatea Craiova (Romania); Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) vs. Strasbourg (France); Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) vs. Shamrock Rovers (Ireland); Fiorentina (Italy) vs. Sigma (Czech Republic); Celje (Slovenia) vs. AEK Athens (Greece); Shelbourne (Ireland) vs. Häcken (Sweden).
The group stage features 36 teams, with each club playing six matches – three at home and three away. After all matches are completed, the eight top-ranked teams will advance directly to the Round of 16. Teams placed 9th to 24th will compete in two-legged playoff ties for a place in the Round of 16. The remaining clubs will exit European competition for the season.
The knockout stages of the tournament will follow the same two-legged format, with the final scheduled as a single match on May 27, 2026, at Red Bull Arena in Leipzig, Germany.
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