Crystal Palace will take on Bosnia-Herzegovina’s HSK Zrinjski Mostar in the play-off round of the Uefa Conference League after finishing 10th in the league phase.
Palace were a seeded team in the play-off round draw meaning they will play the second leg of this tie at home with an understanding of what they need to do to make it into the last-16 of the European competition.
Palace have also been drawn on the same side of the bracket as Fiorentina, who will face Polish side Jagiellonia in the play-off round.
Other results from the draw include Swiss side Lausanne vs Czech club SK Sigma Olomouc and AZ Alkmaar of the Eredivisie taking on FC Noah from the Armenian Premier League.
The draw means Palace will face either Larnaca or Mainz in the last-16 and potentially Fiorentina in the quarter-finals.
Relive the updates from the draw in Nyon below:
Conference League play-off draw live
- Crystal Palace face testing route to Conference League final after play-off draw
- Palace drawn against HSK Zrinjski Mostar from Bosnia-Herzegovina
Crystal Palace face testing route to Conference League final after play-off draw
13:04 , Mike JonesCrystal Palace’s route to the Uefa Conference League final has been partially revealed after the Eagles were drawn on the silver side of the bracket for the knockout rounds.
Oliver Glasner’s side finished 10th in the league phase and missed out on an automatic spot in the round of 16 meaning they must first progress through a two-legged play-off.
Palace won just three of their six league games and notched up 10 points with one draw and two defeats coming from the other three fixtures. It meant they entered the play-off draw as one of the seeded teams and were subsequently drawn against HSK Zrinjski Mostar from Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Crystal Palace face testing route to Conference League final after play-off draw
Play-off round fixture dates
12:50 , Mike JonesThe ties for the play-off rounds will be held on 19 February 2026 and 26 February 2026.
The seeded teams, including Palace, will play the second legs at home.
Dates and fixture reversals are handled on a case-by-case basis by Uefa.
The official calendar will be announced on 30th January 2026.
Last-16 draw
12:45 , Mike JonesThere will be another draw following the play-off round to determine who will play each other in the first knockout round proper.
Palace know they will face either Mainz or Larnaca.
Should they then make it to the quarter-final they will face one of Fiorentina, Jagiellonia, Strasbourg or Rakow Czestochowa.
The latter two of which finished first and second in the league phase table.
Not an easy route to Leipzig for Oliver Glasner’s side.
Conference League favourites
12:40 , Chris WilsonHere are the odds for the main sides to win the competition, with Palace unsurprisingly favourites despite Strasbourg’s fast start.
While Palace have struggled domestically of late, they remain arguably the best side in the tournament on paper, while Strasbourg will likely need a period to adapt following the departure of Liam Rosenior.
Can Glasner go one better from last year and deliver the Eagles their first European trophy?
Odds:
Crystal Palace 3/1
RC Strasbourg 5/1
Fiorentina 6/1
Mainz 8/1
Rayo Vallecano 9/1
Conference League key dates
12:35 , Chris WilsonThe knockout round play-offs will take place on 19 & 26 February 2026 respectively, with the seeded teams playing the second legs at home.
Remaining key dates for the rest of the competition include:
Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final draws: 27 February 2026
Round of 16: 12 & 19 March 2026
Quarter-finals: 9 & 16 April 2026
Semi-finals: 30 April & 7 May 2026
Final: 27 May 2026 (Leipzig)
Palace learn play-off round fate
12:34 , Mike JonesCrystal Palace will take on Bosnia-Herzegovina’s HSK Zrinjski Mostar in the play-off round of the Uefa Conference League after finishing 10th in the league phase.
Palace were a seeded team in the play-off round draw meaning they will play the second leg of this tie at home with an understanding of what they need to do to make it into the last-16 of the European competition.
Palace have also been drawn on the same side of the bracket as Fiorentina, who will face Polish side Jagiellonia in the play-off round.
Other results from the draw include Swiss side Lausanne vs Czech club SK Sigma Olomouc and AZ Alkmaar of the Eredivisie taking on FC Noah from the Armenian Premier League.
The draw means Palace will face either Larnaca or Mainz in the last-16 and potentially Fiorentina in the quarter-finals.
Conference League draw live
12:26 , Mike JonesHere’s the full draw for the play-off round:
Jagiellonia vs Fiorentina
Omonoia vs Rijeka
AZ Alkmaar vs FC Noah
Celje vs Drita FC
Lech Poznan vs KuPS Kuopio
Samsunspor vs Shkendija
Crystal Palace vs HSK Zrinjki
FC Lausanne vs Sigma Olomouc
Conference League draw live
12:24 , Mike JonesCrystal Palace are on the silver side of the draw!
They face HSK Zrinjski in the play-off round.
FC Lausanne play Sigma Olomouc on the green side.
Conference League draw live
12:23 , Mike JonesFour more fixtures to decide:
On the silver side Lech Poznan will take on KuPS Kuopio.
Samunspor will take on Shkendija on the green side.
Two more matches to go...
Conference League draw live
12:22 , Mike JonesAZ Alkmaar will face FC Noah on the silver side.
Celje will take on Drita FC on the green side of the bracket.
Conference League draw live
12:21 , Mike JonesOkay, so it’s time for the seeded teams.
Facing Jagiellonia on the silver side of the bracket is Fiorentina!
On the green side Omonoia will play Rijeka!
Crystal Palace will actually be on of the last teams drawn out as we’re now going in reverse order.
Conference League draw live
12:19 , Mike JonesJust four more teams to come out on this boring part of the draw.
On the silver side of the bracket are FC Noah and Jagiellona.
While on the green side of the bracket are FC Drita and Omonoia FC.
Next up we’ll find out who they face, Crystal Palace will be one of the first two teams drawn out in the next stage of the draw.
Conference League draw live
12:17 , Mike JonesOn the green side of the bracket is SK Sigma Olomouc.
Back to the silver side and the next team drawn out is KuPS Kuopio.
That means Shkëndija will go into the green side of the draw.
Conference League draw live
12:16 , Mike JonesOkay, let’s go.
The unseeded teams are drawn first...
... first up on the silver side of the bracket is HSK Zrinjski.
Conference League draw live
12:13 , Mike JonesThe Unseeded teams will be drawn out first and place on opposite sides of the play off bracket.
The procedure is then repeated for the seeded teams and the ties are confirmed.
Conference League draw live
12:11 , Mike JonesA final explanation of the draw is done. Teams are paired based on where they finished in the league phase meaning there are only two options that a club can face in the play-off round.
In principle the seeded clubs will play the second leg of the tie at home.
Conference League draw live
12:10 , Mike JonesGallas congratulates Chelsea on winning the tournament last season and says that many clubs will try to emulate them in winning all of the Uefa trophies.
He also says that the pressure on the clubs remaining in the draw will now intensify as they enter the knockout rounds.
Conference League draw live
12:07 , Mike JonesGiorgio Marchetti, Uefa’s Deputy General Secretary, and the man in charge of all the draws comes onto the stage.
He does another summary of the 16 teams in the draw and explains why the Conference League was introduced.
Next up he introduces William Gallas.
The former Chelsea player will help conduct the draw this afternoon.
Conference League draw live
12:04 , Mike JonesA quick video is played showing highlights of the 16 teams involved in the play off draw and how they went about their league phase.
It’s mainly quick clips of goals and celebrations. Nothing to get too excited about.
Conference League draw live
12:02 , Mike JonesPedro Pinto is hosting the draw and begins by giving a summary of the league phase including the final matchday round up.
Pinto then explains that 16 teams will be drawn into eight play off fixtures.
Conference League draw live
12:00 , Mike JonesOkay then, coverage of the Conference League play off draw is about to begin.
Crystal Palace must get through the play off in order to make it into the knockout rounds properly and Oliver Glasner will be confident his team can go on a long run in the competition.
Let’s see how it all plays out...
Which teams made the knockout round?
11:57 , Chris WilsonThe following eight teams finished in the top eight in the league phase and automatically qualified for the knockout rounds:
- RC Strasbourg
- Raków Częstochowa
- AEK Athens
- Sparta Praha
- Rayo Vallecano
- Shakhtar Donetsk
- Mainz
- AEK Larnaca
Conference League seedings
11:54 , Chris WilsonAs mentioned above, the seedings are based on where each side finished in the league phase, so every club has a rough idea of who they’ll face in the play-offs.
The following list shows which clubs could face each other:
- Lausanne OR Crystal Palace vs Sigma Olomouc OR Zrinjski
- Lech Poznan OR Samsunspor vs KuPS Kuopio OR Shkëndija
- Celje OR AZ Alkmaar vs Noah OR Drita
- Fiorentina OR Rijeka vs Jagiellonia OR Omonoia
Which teams are involved?
11:51 , Chris WilsonUnseeded teams
- Drita (KOS)
- Jagiellonia (POL)
- KuPS Kuopio (FIN)
- Noah (ARM)
- Omonoia (CYP)
- Shkëndija (MKD)
- Sigma Olomouc (CZE)
- Zrinjski (BIH)
Which teams are involved?
11:48 , Chris WilsonThere are 16 teams in the draw in total, with eight seeded clubs and another eight unseeded clubs. The teams who finished between 9th and 16th in the league phase are seeded, with those finishing between 17th and 24th unseeded.
Seeded teams
- AZ Alkmaar (NED)
- Celje (SLO)
- Crystal Palace (ENG)
- Fiorentina (ITA)
- Lausanne-Sport (SUI)
- Lech Poznań (POL)
- Rijeka (CRO)
- Samsunspor (TUR)
How does the draw work?
11:45 , Chris WilsonAccording to Uefa, “clubs are paired based on their positions at the end of the league phase, and they form four seeded pairs (clubs in positions 9 and 10, 11 and 12, 13 and 14, and 15 and 16) and four unseeded pairs (positions 17 and 18, 19 and 20, 21 and 22, and 23 and 24).”
Then, the clubs in each seeded pair are drawn into the knockout phase bracket, against the clubs in each unseeded pair: clubs 9 or 10 against clubs 23 or 24, clubs 11 or 12 against clubs 21 or 22, clubs 13 or 14 against clubs 19 or 20, and clubs 15 or 16 against clubs 17 or 18.
This means that clubs already know that they will face one of two teams. In the case of Palace, the Eagles will be drawn against one of the sides who finished 23rd or 24th, so either HŠK Zrinjski Mostar of Bosnia or SK Sigma Olomouc of Czechia.
When is the Conference League play-off draw?
11:40 , Chris WilsonThe draw for the play-offs will take place on Friday, 16 January at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland. The draw is scheduled to begin at 12pm GMT (1pm CET).
How can I watch it?
The draw will be streamed live on UEFA.com and the official UEFA Conference League app.
Conference League play-off draw live
11:35 , Chris WilsonThe draw for the play-off round of the Uefa Conference League takes place on Friday, with clubs including Crystal Palace and Fiorentina learning their routes to the last 16 this afternoon.
The ceremony sees the teams who finished between 9th and 24th in the league phase drawn out to face each other over two legs in a bid to reach the knockout phases proper.
Several sides who are among the favourites for the competition – including Palace – are in the draw alongside a range of European clubs, from minnows KuPS and Zrinjski Mostar to Italian giants and two-time runners-up Fiorentina.
Ties will be played on 19 and 26 February, with those sides who finished between 9th and 16th playing the second legs at home in principle.
Palace's route to Leipzig
11:34 , Chris WilsonPalace already have an idea of a rough route to the final, and fans and players alike can start evaluating who they might want to avoid.
If the Eagles get through their play-off tie then they will face either AEK Larnaca or German side Mainz, who currently sit 17th in the Bundesliga.
After that things could start to get tricky, with a potential tie against Strasbourg or Raków Częstochowa in the quarter-finals.
The semi-finals would be far from straightforward too, with potential to face Rayo Vallecano, Sparta Praha or Shakhtar Donetsk depending on results elsewhere.
Good morning
11:30 , Chris WilsonHello and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of today’s draw for the play-off round of the Europa Conference League.
Teams including Crystal Palace, AZ Alkmaar and Fiorentina will be learning their play-off opponents this afternoon, as the route to the final in Leipzig begins to open up for each club.
We’ll have all the latest updates right here.
