The second qualifying round of the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League is upon us. A week on from the first stage of qualification, the eight winning sides from that round join eight new entries as they look to qualify for the competition’s league phase in September.
Ahead of the action, The Deck previews each of the eight ties. We will also predict who will move on to the third qualifying round of the UEL.
UEFA Europa League: Second Qualifying Round
First up is one of the more intriguing ties in this round, as Lugano takes on CFR Cluj. It is the second time that the former is facing a Romanian team, eight years on from meeting FCSB in the Europa League group stage. Both teams won their away legs 2-1 on that occasion. In their two previous second qualifying round ties in Europe, Lugano failed to advance. For CFR Cluj, they own a 3-2-3 record versus Swiss clubs, although they are winless in the last four (0-2-2). The Romanian outfit has seven clean sheets in their last eight continental matches. Prediction: CFR Cluj
A huge opportunity awaits Celje and AEK Larnaca as the pair face off. The Slovenians, who reached the UEFA Conference League quarterfinals last term, played three matches versus Cypriot teams during that run, going 1-1-1. They prevailed in their knockout playoffs tie versus Omonoia Nicosia. Across their last 15 European home games, they have lost just once (9-5-1). AEK has progressed from seven of their last eight UEL ties, with only Gent beating them six years ago in Q3. Under the Europa League banner, they have never been knocked out before the penultimate round of qualifying. Prediction: AEK Larnaca
Levski Sofia will have the arduous task of meeting the ultimate Europa League team in Sporting Braga. The Bulgraian team has a respectable 2-1-3 against sides from Portugal, with both victories coming at home. The last meeting came versus Sporting CP 15 years ago in the UEL GS, both clubs winning their respective home matches. They battle a Braga club that has featured at some point in the compeittion in all but two of the editions. No other team has more appearances. They have never been eliminated before UEL Q3. Braga is also unbeaten in 16 UEL qualifying matches (11-5-0), with the last loss coming in 2013/14 versus Pandurii. Prediction: Sporting Braga
Baník Ostrava takes on Legia Warszawa in what is another fascinating matchup. It is the sixth time that the club from Czechia will compete in Europe, and the second in the UEL under its current guise. They have fallen in the third qualifying round in each of their last three continental journeys. Legia knocked out Slavia Praha in the UEL playoff round four years ago, 4-3 on aggregate. That result coincides with their most recent appearance in the UEL proper. Since then, they have partaken in the Conference League proper twice, reaching the quarterfinals last spring. Prediction: Legia Warszawa
One of two teams in this round to win the UEFA Cup, Anderlecht commences their UEL run BK Häcken. The Brussels-based side is unbeaten versus Swedish clubs (3-3-0), with their last tie coming 24 years ago in UCL Q3 against Halmstads. In three previous participations in UEL qualifying, Anderlecht has never been eliminated. Häcken will have their first meeting with a Belgian side. The Allsvenskan club survived UEL Q2 on two of five occasions, but has not done so since 2013/14 when they took out Sparta Praha. Prediction: Anderlecht
Sheriff Tiraspol is set to face Utrecht in their tie. All four of their previous games versus Dutch teams came in the Europa League group stage, going 1-1-2. Moldova’s record champion lost at this stage a year ago to Elfsborg, making it the second year running they failed to successfully negotiate this round. This is Utrecht’s first European tie in six years. They will aim to do what they did 15 years ago, when they qualified for the group stage starting from this round. However, they have been knocked out of continental play at this stage in two of their last three forays. Prediction: Utrecht
FC Midtjylland will be up against Hibernian in an important battle in the UEFA coefficient rankings. The club from Herning is 1-1-2 against Scottish teams, knocking off Celtic four years ago in UCL Q2. They are in search of their fifth appearance in the UEL proper, and fourth in the last five years. Hibs was knocked out of by Brøndby nine years ago at this stage on penalties. In their three subsequent European journeys, they got past this round, yet they have yet to taste group phase football. Prediction: FC Midtjylland
The last tie here is our pick for tie of the round, as Beşiktaş squares off against Shakhtar Donetsk. Fourth place finishers in Türkiye last term, Beşiktaş eliminated Dynamo Kyiv in the UECL PO two years ago. With that said, they have a 5-2-7 record versus Ukrainian clubs. They will be looking to be in the UEL proper in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2018/19 and 2019/20. Shakhtar has a near-flawless record against Turkish teams (8-1-0), conceding just once and scoring 18 times. Since the group stage era in the UEFA Cup, Shakhtar has played in the Champions League or UEFA Cup/Europa League group phase in each year. Prediction: Shakhtar Donetsk