The Premier League could boast six clubs in the Champions League for a second season running if all the right pieces fall into place.
The extra fifth place was sealed after Arsenal reached the Champions League quarter-finals. It is the second consecutive year that the Premier League has earned an additional spot, with the English top flight at the top of the European Performance Standings (EPS).
Last term saw an unprecedented six English clubs qualify for the Champions League; five by their league position, and with Tottenham earning their place in the league phase after winning the Europa League.
The same could happen again this term, with the Premier League appearing as one of the more prominent beneficiaries to the competition’s expansion to 36 teams that came into effect at the beginning of 2024/25.
Here’s what needs to happen:
Why six Premier League teams could qualify for the Champions League
As with every season, the top four clubs in the Premier League table are guaranteed a spot in the 2026/27 edition – but like last year, England have earned an additional place.
That fifth spot is earned by being one of the best-performing two nations in each season’s European club competitions. English teams performed particularly well in the Champions League league phase, which boosted their points tally in Uefa’s standings, and while last-16 exits of Chelsea, Manchester City, Newcastle and Tottenham threatened their ranking, Arsenal’s success has eased any fears of the Premier League being limited to four berths next term.
The Premier League will therefore definitely have a quintet of Champions League teams by the end of the campaign. But wait, there’s more! The winner of the Europa League is also awarded a place in the Champions League – and Aston Villa will be playing Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals, with Freiburg and Braga on the other side of the draw.
What happens if Aston Villa win the Europa League?
Aston Villa are the favourites to lift the title. Unai Emery is a serial winner of the competition and Villa stormed past Bologna 7-1 on aggregate to reach the semi-finals, where they will face a Nottingham Forest side that is also battling relegation this season.
Villa are currently fourth in the Premier League, way ahead of sixth-placed Chelsea. As it stands, they are looking on course to qualify for the Champions League anyway. If Villa win the Europa League and finish fourth, the Premier League will stay with five teams in the Champions League.
But if Villa win the Europa League and finish fifth the additional place in the Champions League awarded by the EPS will drop down to the team that finishes sixth in the Premier League.
This is of interest to several Premier League teams, with the race for sixth extremely competitive this season. There are just three points separating sixth-placed Chelsea to Fulham, in 12th.
What happens if Nottingham Forest win the Europa League?
Forest are embroiled in a relegation battle at the other end of the table so their requirements are more straightforward; if they win the Europa League, a sixth spot in the continent’s premier competition will be sealed, just like Tottenham last season.
The Premier League could have had an unprecedented seventh seat at Europe’s top table, which might have come if an English team won the Champions League but also finished outside of the top five.
However, after how things panned out in the quarter-finals, that is no longer possible. Liverpool, who are fifth in the Premier League, were knocked out by holders Paris Saint-Germain, while Arsenal – still in the competition and set for a semi-final tie with Atletico Madrid – cannot mathematically finish outside the Champions League qualification places, sat 22 points ahead of sixth at the top of the English top flight.
