UEFA Europa League 2026-27: Playoff Leg 1 Stats & Previews

UEFA Europa League Playoff Leg 1 Overview

The excitement is getting higher day by day as the UEFA Europa League playoff Leg 1 approaches. In this Leg 1, 24 teams are playing for their position in the Europa League. These ninety pressurized minutes on the pitch will show their months of hard work in training. There is one step to reach the main league phase. So, teams must play stronger to reach the main league phase.

Fans decorate the stadiums, filling them with energy. Each team’s players and coaches know that every pass and every goal matters from here on. Everyone must be cautious, and any single mistake will cost them waiting until next season. Any technical or skillful moment by players would change a club’s entire season. Expect a high-intensity match, great energy, and unforgettable football as these teams fight for their dreams.

What to expect in the UEFA Europa League Playoff Leg 1?

High pressure and tactical struggles are expected in this first match. Without the away goals rule, the home team will play aggressively in search of scoring quickly. Big clubs such as Benfica and Beşiktaş need to get into the game from the start. They showcase their talents before the eyes of their fanatic supporters.

On the other side, the smaller clubs will focus on holding on as much as possible without conceding any goals. It is an incredibly important match as victory will mean getting millions in the league stage. Expect a mix of nervous defending, brilliant counter-attacks, and raw passion as teams fight for a historic European breakthrough.

UEFA Europa League Playoff Leg 1 Schedules

Date	Matches		Time Zones			Venue
	Home Team	Away Team	ET	PT	IST
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Kairat	Anderlecht	11:00 AM	08:00 AM	08:30 PM	Almaty Ortalyk Stadion (Central Stadium), Kairat
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Jagiellonia Białystok	Saburtalo	12:00 PM	09:00 AM	09:30 PM	Chorten Arena, Białystok
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Mjällby	RB Salzburg	12:00 PM	09:00 AM	09:30 PM	Strandvallen, Mjällby
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Trabzonspor	Ferencváros	01:00 PM	10:00 AM	10:30 PM	Şenol Güneş Sports Complex, Trabzonspor
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Beşiktaş	Kauno Žalgiris	01:00 PM	10:00 AM	10:30 PM	Tüpraş Stadium, Istanbul
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Craiova	Ararat-Armenia	01:00 PM	10:00 AM	10:30 PM	Ion Oblemenco Stadium, Craiova
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Lech Poznań	Thun	01:00 PM	10:00 AM	10:30 PM	Poznań Stadium, Poznań
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Egnatia	Lillestrøm	01:00 PM	10:00 AM	10:30 PM	Stadiumi “Arena Egnatia”, Albania
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	STVV	Omonoia	02:00 PM	11:00 AM	11:30 PM	Daio Wasabi Stayen Stadium, Sint-Truiden
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	Crvena zvezda	Viktoria Plzeň	02:00 PM	11:00 AM	11:30 PM	Rajko Mitić Stadium, Belgrade
20 August 2026 (Thursday)	OFI	CSKA Sofia	02:00 PM	11:00 AM	11:30 PM	Theodoros Vardinogiannis Stadium, Heraklion
21 August 2026 (Friday)	Benfica	AGF	03:00 PM	12:00 PM	12:30 AM (Next day)	Estádio da Luz, Lisbon

Match Previews

Kairat vs Anderlecht

Date: 20 August 2026 (Thursday)

Time: 11:00 AM ET | 08:00 AM PT | 08:30 PM IST

Venue: Almaty Ortalyk Stadion (or) Central Stadium, Kairat

UEFA Europa League Squad List

Kairat

Position	Players
Goalkeepers	Temirlan Anarbekov, Sherhan Kalmurza
Defenders	Luís Mata, Damir Kassabulat, Lev Kurgin, Aleksandr Martynovich, Alexandr Mrynskiy, Alexandr Shirobokov, Lucas Áfrico
Midfielders	Adilet Sadybekov, Olzhas Baibek, Jaakko Oksanen, Azamat Tuyakbayev, Oiva Jukkola, Yerkin Tapalov, Gustavo Mendonça
Forwards	Edmilson, Mansur Birkurmanov, Marc Gual, Ismail Bekbolat
Coach	Rafael Urazbakhtin

Anderlecht

Position	Players
Goalkeepers	Colin Coosemans, Justin Heekeren, Mattis Seghers, Michiel Haentjens
Defenders	Zoumana Keita, Giulian Biancone, Moussa Ndiaye, Ludwig Augustinsson, Leo Petrot, Kaïs Barry, Basile Vroninks, Ali Maamar
Midfielders	Nathan Saliba, Lukáš Ambros, Enric Llansana, Mario Stroeykens, Omar Sarr, Marco Kana, Joshua Nga Kana, Alexander De Ridder, Noah Kalonji, Tristan Degreef
Forwards	Mihajlo Cvetković, Oliver Antman, Danylo Sikan, César Huerta, Jayden Onia Seke, Noa Ojea, Terry Van De Ven, Adriano Bertaccini
Coach	Vítor Bruno

Injury List

Kairat Almaty does not have any unavailable players. 

Unavailable players for Anderlecht: Killian Sardella, Ilay Camara, Lucas Hey, Cedric Hatenboer.

Key Stats and Analysis

Kairat was relegated to the European Qualifying after a marginal aggregate defeat against Levski Sofia. It happens in the Champions League third qualifying round. Later, they won against Omonia in the penalty shootout.

Anderlecht enters this match in strong form after a victory against PAOK. They won with an aggregate of 4-2 in the European League third qualifying round. They are maintaining their momentum in the Belgian Pro League.

Anderlecht has shown a clear scoring form in Europe and Domestic leagues. They have scored 31 goals in their recent stretches and are keeping a steady attacking rhythm. Both teams have the tendency to concede goals. This tends towards an open game with potential goals at both ends. Anderlecht’s European experience gives them the edge. Meanwhile, Kairat is tough to break down at home in Almaty.

The Pick: Anderlecht.

Mjällby vs RB Salzburg

Date: 20 August 2026 (Thursday)

Time: 12:00 PM ET | 09:00 AM PT | 09:30 PM IST

Venue: Strandvallen, Mjällby

UEFA Europa League Squad List

Mjällby

Position	Players
Goalkeepers	Robin Wallinder, Melker Ahlstrand, Alexander Lundin
Defenders	Ludvig Svanberg, Martin Agnarsson, Axel Norén, Abdullah Iqbal, Tom Pettersson, Ian Hoffman, Ludvig Tidstrand, Tony Miettinen
Midfielders	Viktor Gustafson, Teo Helge, Jeppe Kjær, Villiam Granath, Bork Bang-Kittilsen, Villum Dalsgaard, Jesper Gustavsson, Áki Samuelsen, Max Nielsen, Olle Lindberg, Romeo Leandersson
Forwards	Ali Youssef, Jacob Bergström
Coach	Karl Marius Aksum

RB Salzburg

Position	Players
Goalkeepers	Christian Früchtl, Nikola Sarcevic, Christian Zawieschitzky
Defenders	John Mellberg, Frans Krätzig, Tim Drexler, Stefan Lainer, Dominik Schmid, Leandro Morgalla, Kevin Boma, Valentin Zabransky
Midfielders	Umut Tohumcu, Maurits Kjærgaard, Bartosz Mazurek, Nikolas Veratschnig, Filip Matijašević, Abubakr Barry, Aboubacar Camara
Forwards	Sota Kitano, Haris Tabaković, Yorbe Vertessen, Karim Konaté, Edmund Baidoo, Damir Redzic, Yerwin Antonio Sulbaran Lopez, Enrique Aguilar
Coach	Danny Röhl

Injury List

Unavailable players for Mjällby: Timo Stavitski.

Unavailable players for Salzburg: Enrique Aguilar, Gaoussou Diakité, Soumaïla Diabaté, Justin Omoregie, Anrie Chase, Stefan Lainer.

Key Stats and Analysis

Mjällby, the Swedish side, enters the historic European playoff after being relegated from the Champions League qualifiers. They lost to Slovan Bratislava with an aggregate of 4-1. After that, they rebounded domestically with a 4-3 win over Sirius. They are clearly an underdog playing at their smaller home venue.

RB Salzburg, the Austrian powerhouse, comes in with strong recent wins. Their momentum in the last 5 matches was 3 wins and 2 losses. When compared, they have progressed through the previous qualifying rounds.

This tends to be a one-sided game, with Salzburg likely to score. Salzburg’s European experience gives them the edge. Meanwhile, Mjällby will try to show their full strength in front of home fans.

The Pick: RB Salzburg

Beşiktaş vs Kauno Žalgiris

Date: 20 August 2026 (Thursday)

Time: 01:00 PM ET | 10:00 AM PT | 10:30 PM IST

Venue: Tüpraş Stadium, Istanbul

UEFA Europa League Squad List

Beşiktaş

Position Name	Player Names
Goalkeepers	Alexander Nübel, Tuğra Yeşilyurt, Doğan Alemdar, Emir Yaşar
Defenders	Kassoum Ouattara, Emmanuel Agbadou, Taylan Bulut, Rıdvan Yılmaz, Tiago Djaló, Emirhan Topçu, Yasin Özcan, Michael Murillo, Mustafa Yortaç, Cumali Gürsel, Asım Işık
Midfielders	Wilfred Ndidi, Amir Hadžiahmetović, Salih Özcan, Milot Rashica, Kartal Yılmaz, Orkun Kökçü, Junior Olaitan, Václav Černý, Leandro Trossard, Ilhan Fakılı, Ali Pağda, Ozan Sevim, Fahri Ay
Forwards	Hyeongyu Oh, Mustafa Hekimoğlu, Dušan Vlahović, Ahmet Bircan, Semih Kılıçsoy
Coach	Vincenzo Italiano

Kauno Žalgiris

Position Name	Player Names
Goalkeepers	Deividas Mikelionis, Tomas Švedkauskas
Defenders	Anton Tolordava, Aldayr Hernandez, Marko Konatar, Nosa Edokpolor, Joris Moutachy, Lirim Kastrati, Rokas Lekiatas
Midfielders	Amine Benchaib, Yukiyoshi Karashima, Gratas Sirgėdas, Vykintas Slivka, Léo Ribeiro, Ivan Fiolić, Anthony Kalik, Franco Baldassarra, Fabien Ourega
Forwards	Leon Kreković, Renan Oliveira, Motiejus Burba, Gabriel Debeljuh
Coach	Željko Sopić

Team Stats and Analysis

Beşiktaş enters this UEFA Europa League qualification match with solid defensive and offensive play. They already proved their depth is strong in the earlier rounds, which include a win over Midtjylland. They started their domestic Turkish Super Lig campaign with a 1-0 win against Eyüpspor. They are heavily favored to win because of their strong European history.

Kauno Žalgiris, the Lithuanian side, has fought hard throughout the preliminary qualifying rounds to reach this stage. They mostly depend on their disciplined defensive setups and tactical control. Beşiktaş is expected to win, but with a tight tactical battle. Beşiktaş is expected to control possession in central areas rather than high-volume wide attacks.

The Pick: Beşiktaş

Benfica vs AGF

Date: 21 August 2026 (Friday)

Time: 3:00 PM ET | 12:00 PM PT | 12:30 AM IST (Next day)

Venue: Estádio da Luz, Lisbon

UEFA Europa League Squad List

Benfica

Position Name	Player Names
Goalkeepers	Anatoliy Trubin, Samuel Soares, Diogo Ferreira, Arnas Voitinovičius, Leonardo Lopes
Defenders	Clément Lenglet, Alexander Bah, Amar Dedić, Samuel Dahl, Gabriel Índio, Tomás Araújo, João Fonseca, Daniel Banjaqui, José Neto, Joshua Wynder, Rui Silva
Midfielders	Enzo Barrenechea, Fredrik Aursnes, Georgiy Sudakov, Manu Silva, Leandro Barreiro, Richard Ríos, Miguel Figueiredo, Gonçalo Moreira, Martim Ferreira, Tiago Freitas
Forwards	Dodi Lukébakio, Jakub Kamiński, Vangelis Pavlidis, Andreas Schjelderup, Jhon Durán, Gianluca Prestianni, Rafa Silva, Anísio Cabral, Olívio Tomé, João Rego, Francisco Silva, Eduardo Fernandes
Coach	Marco Silva

AGF

Position Name	Player Names
Goalkeepers	Jesper Hansen, Mads Christiansen
Defenders	Colin Rösler, Mouhammade Camara, Frederik Tingager, Tobias Mølgaard, Eric Kahl, Jacob Andersen, Rasmus Carstensen, Jonas Jensen-Abbew
Midfielders	Hamuza Sengooba, Magnus Knudsen, Nikolaj Poulsen, Markus Solbakken, Kristian Arnstad, Gift Links, Jens Jønsson, Mikael Anderson
Forwards	Sebastian Jørgensen, Janni Serra, Youssouph Badji, James Bogere, Tobias Bech
Coach	Jakob Poulsen

Injury List

Unavailable players for Benfica: Fredrik Aursnes.

Unavailable players for AGF: Frederik Tingager, Kevin Yakob, Nicolai Poulsen. 

Key Stats and Analysis

Benfica is heavily favored to win against AGF in the UEFA Europa League playoff Leg 1. They advanced to this stage after defeating Hearts. They won with an aggregate of 7-2 by winning 6-1 at home and drawing 1- 1 away. This happened in the previous qualifying round. They are averaging a high 5.5 goals per home European match this season. The club is currently handled by Marco Silva, featuring strong attacking threats like Gianluca Prestianni.

AGF is moving through the European qualifying after making ties against Lech Poznań and Silkeborg. Their current form in the Danish Superliga has been mixed, with high-scoring draws and defensive struggles against elite European opposition.

Benfica has a strong home advantage at the Estádio da Luz. This includes their attacking quality and consistency; this makes them a favorite. European home scoring record gives them an upper hand. AGF will try to manage pressure and play defensively. Meanwhile, Benfica’s speed and depth in the final third should break them early.

The Pick: Benfica

UEFA Europa League Playoff Leg 2 Expectations

UEFA Europa League maintains its tradition of exciting football in the process of qualifying for the group stage. The first leg of the playoffs is characterized by many interesting games, strong European teams, and tactical encounters. Teams such as Benfica, Beşiktaş, Anderlecht, and RB Salzburg come with great ambition. Nevertheless, the other teams will be trying to surprise them and secure their position for the second leg. Every goal might be decisive at the end of these two-legged encounters. Spectators should anticipate attacking football, tight defense, and exciting moments during these games.  The UEFA Europa League remains one of Europe’s most competitive football competitions.