Uh-oh, "Liverpool" could miss out on the UEFA Champions League due to these three conditions.
On 19 May 2026, three conditions were outlined that could cause Liverpool, who recently lost 2-4 to Aston Villa, to miss out on a spot in next season's UEFA Champions League. The key factor depends on tonight’s match between Bournemouth hosting Manchester City at 01:30.
Looking at the latest Premier League standings, the battle for the final UEFA Champions League spot remains between Liverpool and Bournemouth, while Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Aston Villa have already secured qualification.
1. Arsenal (37 matches) 82 points *qualified for UCL
2. Manchester City (36 matches) 77 points *qualified for UCL
3. Manchester United (37 matches) 68 points *qualified for UCL
4. Aston Villa (37 matches) 62 points (goal difference +6) *qualified for UCL
5. Liverpool (37 matches) 59 points (+10)
6. Bournemouth (36 matches) 55 points (+4)
Currently, Liverpool still has a chance to overtake Aston Villa for 4th place based on goal difference if points are equal. However, they could also drop to 6th place because Bournemouth has two matches remaining and can still surpass them in points.
If Bournemouth loses to Manchester City tonight, Liverpool will be guaranteed a top 5 finish and a UEFA Champions League spot immediately, thanks to an additional UEFA coefficient spot (European Performance Spot - EPS) beyond the usual top 4 qualification.
However, Liverpool could still miss out on UCL qualification if the following three conditions all occur:
1. Liverpool finishes 6th
2. Bournemouth finishes 5th
3. Aston Villa finishes 4th and wins the Europa League
The Europa League champion automatically qualifies for next season's UEFA Champions League, meaning there could be six Premier League teams qualifying if Aston Villa reaches the Europa League final against Freiburg on Wednesday, 20 May.
If Aston Villa wins the Europa League and finishes 5th in the Premier League, the extra UEFA coefficient spot shifts to the 6th place team. But if they finish 4th and win the Europa League, "the Villans" qualify through their league position normally.
In that case, the Europa League champion’s UCL spot is nullified and passed to the highest-ranked league from another association with the next best UEFA coefficient that has not qualified automatically. This would leave the Premier League with teams ranked 1st to 5th (including Villa) qualifying for the UEFA Champions League, and the 6th place team qualifying for the Europa League.
