Play-off: No Champions League for Nikola Serafimov and Levski; Dinamo Zagreb eliminated, Fenerbahçe advances

26 August 2026 — Play-off second legs in the UEFA Champions League decided several notable absences from this season’s group stage: Nikola Serafimov and Levski Sofia were beaten in Athens, Dinamo Zagreb also failed to progress, while Fenerbahçe secured a spot in the Champions League.

Levski’s return to AEK ended in a heavy 4:0 defeat in Athens, which eliminates the Bulgarian side from the Champions League path and sends Nikola Serafimov and his team into the UEFA Europa League for the season.

Surprises and confirmations

Dinamo Zagreb, who drew 2:2 at Maksimir last week, lost again tonight away to Viking by 3:1. The aggregate result means the Croatian club will also continue its European campaign in the Europa League rather than the Champions League.

In the tie between Lyon and Fenerbahçe the first leg in Istanbul finished 1:1; tonight’s return in Lyon ended 1:2 in favour of Fenerbahçe, so the Turkish club advances to the UEFA Champions League while Lyon is eliminated. It is worth noting that VAR disallowed two goals for the French side during the match.

The fixture Celje–Slovan remained unresolved in normal time: the return leg finished 1:1, the same score as their first meeting in Slovakia, and the game will go to extra time to determine who advances.

The play-off round produced both expected and surprising outcomes: some established names dropped into the Europa League while others secured rare places in the Champions League group stage.

Photo: press material from the event