For the 2025-26 season, nine Premier League clubs are in UEFA competitions: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest, and Crystal Palace. Five are in the Champions League, three in the Europa League, and one in the Conference League.
The lineup reflects league placings, cup results, Tottenham’s Europa League title, and a UEFA eligibility ruling involving Crystal Palace. Here is the full club-by-club list, why each team qualified, and how English clubs earn European places. Because qualification can change after domestic cups or UEFA decisions, the season matters: the answer is different from one year to the next.
which premier league teams have european football in 2025-26?
Nine Premier League teams are taking part in UEFA club competitions during the 2025-26 season. Five play in the Champions League, three enter the Europa League, and one competes in the Conference League.
| Competition | Premier League teams | Why they are there | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champions League | Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United | Finished in the top five in 2024-25 | Clubs aiming for Europe’s top club trophy |
| Europa League | Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest | Tottenham won the previous Europa League; Villa qualified through the league; Forest moved into the competition after a UEFA decision affecting Palace | Clubs competing in UEFA’s second-tier tournament |
| Conference League | Crystal Palace | Won the 2024-25 FA Cup but was assigned to this competition after a multi-club ownership ruling | Palace’s route into European competition this season |
These are the Premier League clubs in Europe, not every team in each competition. Clubs from other domestic leagues also take part. The list above applies specifically to the 2025-26 campaign.
The five Premier League clubs in the Champions League
Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Newcastle United qualified for the Champions League by finishing in the Premier League’s top five in 2024-25. England received five league-based places for this season after its clubs’ results in European competitions earned the country an extra place under UEFA’s association performance system.
The Champions League is UEFA’s leading club competition. Its main phase now uses a league table shared by all entrants rather than the old groups of four. Each club plays eight different opponents in that phase. The top eight advance directly to the round of 16, while teams placed ninth through 24th contest a two-legged knockout play-off for the remaining places.
Liverpool and Arsenal
Liverpool won the 2024-25 Premier League, with Arsenal finishing second. Their league positions secured Champions League entry without needing a domestic cup win. Both clubs therefore enter the 2025-26 competition among the English teams qualified through the league.
Manchester City, Chelsea, and Newcastle
Manchester City, Chelsea, and Newcastle completed the top five. Chelsea also won the 2024-25 Conference League, but its domestic finish already gave it a Champions League place. Winning a UEFA competition does not create an extra English entry when the winner has qualified for the Champions League through its league position.
Newcastle also won the 2024-25 EFL Cup. That cup win does not put Newcastle into a different European tournament because its fifth-place finish earned a Champions League spot. In effect, the league route determines the club’s higher-level entry.
Who is in the Europa League?
Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, and Nottingham Forest are the Premier League’s Europa League representatives in 2025-26. Their paths differ: Tottenham qualified as the previous season’s Europa League winner, Villa earned a place through its league finish, and Forest took a Europa League place after Palace’s UEFA eligibility case affected the English allocation.
Tottenham Hotspur qualified as Europa League holders
Tottenham won the 2024-25 Europa League and earned a place in the next Champions League campaign as titleholders. However, Spurs finished 17th in the Premier League, so they did not qualify for the Champions League through the league. Their 2025-26 European entry is in the Europa League, not the Champions League.
This is a useful distinction: winning a European trophy can provide entry to a future UEFA competition, but it does not guarantee that a club will play in the same tournament it just won. The club’s new entry depends on the titleholder rules and the competition allocation for that season.
Aston Villa qualified through the league
Aston Villa finished sixth in the Premier League and initially earned a Europa League place through its league position. Its entry is separate from the FA Cup route. Villa’s qualification shows why a team can reach Europe even without winning a domestic cup.
Nottingham Forest moved into the Europa League
Nottingham Forest finished seventh and was initially in line for the Conference League place connected to the domestic allocation. Crystal Palace won the FA Cup, which ordinarily provided a Europa League place, but UEFA ruled Palace ineligible for that competition because of its ownership arrangements with Lyon. The resulting allocation placed Forest in the Europa League and Palace in the Conference League.
That is why a table of league positions alone does not tell the whole story. Cup winners, clubs already qualified through another route, and UEFA eligibility decisions can change which team receives a particular competition place.
Why Crystal Palace is in the Conference League
Crystal Palace is the Premier League club in the 2025-26 Conference League. Palace earned European qualification by winning the 2024-25 FA Cup. The final ended in a 1-0 win over Manchester City, giving Palace its first major men’s trophy and a place in European competition.
Palace was initially expected to enter the Europa League. UEFA’s rules limit the ability of clubs with linked owners to compete in the same UEFA competition when the ownership relationship does not meet the required independence conditions. Palace and Lyon had overlapping ownership links, and UEFA determined that Palace could not take the Europa League place under the arrangements in place at the assessment deadline.
The outcome was not that Palace lost European football entirely. It was moved to the Conference League, while Nottingham Forest was elevated to the Europa League. This is a notable example of how eligibility rules can change the competition attached to a qualifying result.
What to remember: Palace’s Conference League place comes from its FA Cup win, while the competition change came from UEFA’s ownership ruling. It was not simply a consequence of Palace finishing below Forest in the league.
How Premier League clubs earn European places
There is no single fixed number of English clubs in Europe every season. The allocation depends on UEFA’s places for each association, the Premier League table, domestic cup winners, European titleholders, and whether qualified clubs meet UEFA eligibility rules.
- League finish provides the main route. Premier League clubs placed high enough in the table receive Champions League, Europa League, or Conference League places according to that season’s allocation.
- Domestic cups can award places. The FA Cup and EFL Cup may carry European qualification. If a cup winner has already qualified for a higher UEFA competition through the league, the place is reassigned under the applicable rules.
- European trophy wins can provide entry. The Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League winners can qualify for a later season’s UEFA competition. The exact destination depends on the competition rules and the club’s other qualification route.
- Association performance can add a place. UEFA gives extra Champions League places to the strongest-performing associations in European competition for the preceding season. England’s extra place contributed to its five league qualifiers for 2025-26.
- Eligibility rules still apply. Clubs must meet UEFA requirements, including rules governing linked ownership. If a club cannot take its expected place, UEFA’s allocation process determines what happens next.
The sequence matters. You cannot reliably identify every European entrant by looking only at the top four, or by assuming each cup winner takes a separate place. A titleholder might already have qualified through its league, and a cup winner might be moved or replaced if it fails UEFA’s eligibility checks.
How many English clubs can qualify for Europe?
The number changes by season. England had eight clubs in UEFA competitions in 2024-25, and nine Premier League teams are taking part in 2025-26. The additional league-based Champions League place in 2025-26 came through England’s performance in European competitions, while the final distribution also reflects domestic cup and titleholder routes.
That does not mean England is guaranteed nine places every year. The extra Champions League place is decided season by season, and the cup winners’ positions can affect the lower European places. A club’s finish in the table is important, but it is not the only factor.
It also helps to distinguish qualification from the competition a team ultimately enters. A club can qualify via a cup but be assigned to another tournament after UEFA’s rules are applied. Likewise, finishing just outside a customary place can still lead to Europe if an extra association place or a cup reallocation creates an opening.
What the three competitions mean for these clubs
| Competition | Where it sits | What the format means | 2025-26 English clubs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champions League | UEFA’s top club competition | Eight league-phase games, followed by direct round-of-16 entry for the top eight and play-offs for teams ranked ninth to 24th | Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United |
| Europa League | UEFA’s second club competition | Eight league-phase games, followed by knockout rounds and a final | Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest |
| Conference League | UEFA’s third club competition | A league phase and knockout rounds provide a European route for clubs outside the top two tournaments | Crystal Palace |
All three competitions use league phases in their current formats. Each club faces multiple opponents before the knockout rounds, but the number and level of opponents differ by tournament. The competition names indicate the level of entry, not a guarantee of how far a particular club will progress.
Common mix-ups about English teams in Europe
Assuming the top four always reach the Champions League
That is not a safe assumption. The number of league places can change when an association earns an extra performance place. England’s fifth-place finisher, Newcastle, joined the Champions League clubs for 2025-26 because England received that additional spot.
Assuming a cup winner always plays in the same competition
A cup win can secure European football, but other qualification routes and eligibility rules can affect the final destination. Palace’s FA Cup win led to a Conference League place after the ownership ruling, rather than its expected Europa League entry.
Assuming a club’s previous-season competition tells you its next one
Tottenham won the Europa League in 2024-25, but that did not mean it would return to the same tournament as a titleholder. Its 2025-26 entry is in the Europa League, while Champions League places are determined by the specific rules and qualification paths for the new campaign.
Assuming every qualifying club is from the league table
Domestic cups and UEFA titleholder provisions can qualify clubs that did not finish high enough for a league-based place. European results can also add an association performance place. For an accurate list, check the completed league table alongside cup outcomes and confirmed UEFA decisions.
Quick list by club
- Liverpool: Champions League, after finishing first in the 2024-25 Premier League.
- Arsenal: Champions League, after finishing second.
- Manchester City: Champions League, after finishing third.
- Chelsea: Champions League, after finishing fourth.
- Newcastle United: Champions League, after finishing fifth.
- Tottenham Hotspur: Europa League, as the 2024-25 competition winner.
- Aston Villa: Europa League, after finishing sixth.
- Nottingham Forest: Europa League, following the revised allocation connected with Palace’s UEFA eligibility decision.
- Crystal Palace: Conference League, after winning the FA Cup and being assigned to that competition under UEFA’s ruling.
For fans checking a different campaign, use that season’s final Premier League table and confirmed cup winners. The list can change every summer, even when the broad qualification principles stay similar.
For 2025-26, five Premier League clubs are in the Champions League, three are in the Europa League, and Crystal Palace is in the Conference League. The lineup reflects league results, Tottenham’s European title, domestic cup qualification, and UEFA’s ownership ruling involving Palace.
For another season, start with the final league table, then account for cup winners and confirmed UEFA decisions. That quick check prevents the common mistake of treating the top four as the full list of English clubs in Europe.
In short, which premier league teams have european football depends on the season and the final allocation, not league position alone. Use the 2025-26 list above for this campaign.