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Nine Premier League clubs have gone toe-to-toe with European football’s elite in the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League this season.
The remarkable performance of English sides has seen the Premier League cement itself as the best division in the world in the eyes of many fans, pundits and players.
Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur have flown the flag in the Champions League during the 2025/26 campaign.Both Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa are through to the last 16 of the Europa League, and FA Cup holders Crystal Palace are holding their own in the Conference League.
However, next season could see even more English sides compete in Europe.
How many English teams could qualify for the UEFA Champions League next season?
For years, finishing in the top four was seen as the equivalent of winning a trophy.
However, five sides look set to qualify for next term’s Champions League as a result of their position in the Premier League. This is because of UEFA’s coefficient rankings.
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The two countries that finish top of the rankings will be granted an additional place in next season’s Champions League.
Newcastle qualified for Europe’s elite competition after the Premier League was awarded an additional place as a result of the UEFA coefficient rankings last term.
Teams are awarded coefficient points for winning games and reaching different stages of UEFA competitions.
England is currently looking comfortable at the top of the standings, as of March 11, after a superb showing in Europe, so the prospect of five Premier League teams in the Champions League is looking increasingly likely.
That is not all, though. The Premier League could have seven sides in the Champions League next term.
This is because the winners of the Champions League and Europa League qualify for the competition if they have not already due to their league position.
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So, if the winners of the Champions League and Europa League were to finish outside of the top five in the Premier League, there would be seven English sides competing with Europe’s elite during the 2026/27 campaign.
How many English teams could be competing in Europe next season?
The number of English sides competing in Europe next season could be as high as 11.
Such a scenario would require seven English clubs to qualify for the Champions League, as outlined above.
It would then need the maximum of three English teams to make it into the Europa League.
In order for that to happen, Crystal Palace would have to qualify for the competition by winning the UEFA Conference League.
That would leave two places available for sides to qualify through more traditional means.
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The winner of the FA Cup will qualify for the Europa League, assuming they do not qualify for the Champions League.
If the winners of the FA Cup do qualify for the Champions League, then the two remaining spots will go to the sides in sixth and seventh.
This is all assuming that there are no repeats of Crystal Palace’s Europa League nightmare from the summer of 2025.
The Eagles thought they had qualified for a place in the Europa League after winning the FA Cup, but they were demoted to the Conference League after being judged to have broken UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules.
That would leave an 11th European place – a Conference League spot which would either go to the team in seventh or the team in eighth.
It would go to the team in seventh if one of the sides in the Europa League qualifies via the FA Cup, but the side in eighth would get it if it comes down to league position.
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