Braga seals Conference League berth with Vienna draw as Portugal sends five teams to Europe

Second leg in Vienna

Sporting de Braga reached the UEFA Conference League league phase on Thursday evening after holding Austria Wien to a 0-0 draw at the Generali Arena. Managed by Carlos Vicens, the Portuguese side defended the 2-0 advantage secured during the first leg in Braga. Carlos Vicens made one lineup change, bringing in Diego Rodrigues for the injured Huseinbasic. Austria Wien pressed early through Manfred Fischer and Julian Hettwer, whose ninth-minute effort flew over the crossbar. The Austrian hosts came closest in the 20th minute when German forward Johannes Eggestein tested goalkeeper Bernardo Fontes with a strike from distance. Braga settled the contest with second-half opportunities, as Dorgeles forced a save from goalkeeper Radlinger in the 62nd minute before Travassos broke through in the 70th minute. Serbian striker Milosevic made his debut in the 83rd minute to close out the draw.

Perfect defensive qualifying run

The clean sheet in Vienna concluded an unbeaten six-match preliminary campaign for Braga across three qualifying rounds. The team eliminated Serbian club Zeleznicar Pancevo, Belarusian outfit Dinamo Minsk, and Austria Wien without conceding a single goal, recording four wins and two draws. Braga became the second Portuguese club to reach the Conference League league phase, following Vitoria de Guimaraes in 2024/25, and secured an initial UEFA payment of 3.1 million euros. Club president António Salvador praised the team following the final whistle.

Congratulations to everyone who achieved this qualification. You can count on an ambitious SC Braga that is conscious of its European responsibility and will do everything to go as far as possible in the competition, also contributing to Portugal's ranking.

Five Portuguese clubs in UEFA main phases

Braga's progress, alongside SL Benfica's 3-1 victory over Danish club Aarhus in the Europa League play-offs, ensures that all five Portuguese teams reached the league phases of UEFA competitions for the 2026/27 season. FC Porto and Sporting play in the Champions League, Benfica and cup winners SCU Torreense enter the Europa League, and Braga features in the Conference League. This marks the eighth campaign in Portuguese football history with at least five clubs in European main phases, matching previous seasons in 2013/14, 2014/15, 2015/16, 2017/18, 2019/20, and 2024/25. The results lift Portugal to 64.550 UEFA coefficient points in sixth place, consolidating three Champions League slots starting in 2027/28.

Competition schedule and playoff field

The 36-team Conference League league phase comprises 24 playoff winners and 12 sides moving from the Europa League qualifiers. Among other qualifiers, Cypriot side Pafos advanced under Portuguese manager Ricardo Sá Pinto by beating Dinamo City 4-2 after extra time, while Andorra's Inter d'Escaldes earned the country's first appearance in a European league phase. The league phase draw takes place on Friday, 28 August in Monaco. Fixtures will run across six matchdays between 15 October and 17 December 2026, with the top eight clubs advancing directly to the round of 16.