Seven Premier League clubs competing in UEFA’s most prestigious competition is actually a crazy thing to think of, even for the delusional football fans. However, this is closer to reality than you think, as we could see as many as seven English sides competing in the UEFA Champions League next season.
Two leagues in Europe this season will be gifted an extra place in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League based on how their clubs perform in the ongoing campaign. If the Premier League happens to be the league getting an extra spot, five teams will get automatic qualification into next season’s Champions League.
Additionally, the winners of this season’s Champions League and Europa League will each be given a place in the 2025/26 Champions League, that is if they have not already qualified for the competition through their league position. If everything comes together and Premier League clubs win the Champions League and Europa League, added with the extra spot, we could see as many as seven clubs in next season’s Champions League.
For example, Aston Villa currently sit eighth in the Premier League. If it happens that they finish the season outside the top four (or top five if the Premier League gets the extra slot) and win the Champions League, they will still get a place in next season’s Champions League. Also, Manchester United and Tottenham are 12th and 15th in the league respectively. They’re both still very much alive in the Europa League, and if either of them goes all the way to win it, they will get a Champions League place for next season.
UEFA determines which two leagues get to be rewarded with an extra Champions League slot by using a ranking called association club coefficient. This involves adding up coefficient points based on the performance of clubs from each league across the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League. Every win for a club in any of UEFA’s club competitions this season earns each league two points, while a draw gets one point, with no points being awarded for a defeat.
Apart from that, bonus points are given depending on the final position of each club during the league phases. The points vary across the three competitions. 12 bonus points are given for finishing top of the Champions League table, six for finishing top of the Europa League table and four for finishing top of the Conference league table.
More bonus points are awarded for reaching each knockout stage, from the round of 16 onwards. These are also based on the competition, as follows: Champions League (1.5 bonus points), Europa League (1 bonus point) and Conference League (0.5 bonus points).
To calculate the association club coefficient average, the points of all participating clubs from each league are added together then divided by the number of clubs who started the season in UEFA competitions.
According to UEFA, the English Premier League tops the coefficient ranking so far with 124.500 points. If it does not fall out of the top two places in the ranking, it will get an extra Champions League spot next season.
