UEFA confirms Europa League schedule with Benfica opening at AC Milan

Benfica opens European campaign at San Siro before Porto clash

UEFA published the complete league phase schedules for the Europa League and Conference League on Saturday following the draw held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Benfica, coached by Marco Silva, will begin their Europa League campaign on 16 September with a trip to northern Italy to face AC Milan. The Italian club is now managed by Rúben Amorim and features Portuguese forwards Gonçalo Ramos and Diego Moreira. Milan enters the European season after winning their opening two Serie A matches against Torino and Venezia. The San Siro fixture takes place just four days before Benfica travels to the Estádio do Dragão to face FC Porto on the weekend of 20 September in the seventh round of the domestic championship. FC Porto will have a full week of preparation because no Champions League matches are scheduled during that midweek slot.

Benfica navigates eight-match schedule through January 2027

Benfica will target a top-eight finish in the league table to secure direct qualification for the round of 16. After opening in Milan, the Lisbon side will host Scottish club Celtic at the Estádio da Luz on 15 October at 20:00. The third matchday will take Marco Silva's team to Cyprus to play Omonia on 22 October at 20:00, followed by a home fixture against Polish club Lech Poznań on 5 November at 20:00. On 26 November, Benfica will travel to the Czech Republic to face Viktoria Plzeň at 17:45, before returning home to play Greek side OFI Crete on 10 December at 20:00. The league phase will finish in January 2027 with back-to-back games against Dutch sides, starting with an away trip to NEC Nijmegen on 21 January at 18:45 and concluding with a home match against AZ Alkmaar on 28 January at 20:00.

Torreense prepares for debut European campaign in Leiria

Torreense will make their debut in continental competition after securing direct qualification through their victory against Sporting in the Taça de Portugal final at the Jamor. The Torres Vedras club will begin their European journey on 17 September with an away fixture in Norway against Lillestrøm at 20:00. Torreense will play all four of their designated home matches in Leiria, opening their home slate on 15 October against English side Sunderland at 17:45. Their schedule continues with an away trip to Hungary to face Ferencváros on 22 October at 17:45 and a home meeting with Armenian side Ararat-Armenia on 5 November at 20:00. In late November, Torreense will host Celtic on 26 November, before travelling to Spain to meet Real Sociedad in the Basque Country on 10 December. The team will close their phase with an away match against Lech Poznań on 21 January and a home match against Olympiacos on 28 January.

Braga represents Portugal in six-match Conference League stage

SC Braga will stand as Portugal's sole representative in the UEFA Conference League for the 2026–2027 season. The Minho club secured their spot in the league phase by advancing through three separate preliminary qualifying rounds during the summer. Unlike the eight-match schedules in the higher European competitions, the Conference League features a six-round league phase. Braga will start their campaign with an away match in Scandinavia against Danish club FC Kobenhavn on 15 October. The team will then host Belgian side KAA Gent on 22 October and travel to Denmark again to play AGF Aarhus on 5 November. Braga will conclude the phase with three consecutive fixtures against KuPS Kuopio at home on 26 November, SK Brann at home on 10 December, and Albanian club KF Egnatia at home on 17 December.