Benfica in the 2026/27 Europa League: full schedule and October doubleheader against Celtic and Omonia

Updated on September 15, 2026. Benfica already know their full schedule for the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League league phase. They will play eight matches against eight different opponents, with four at home and four away. The sequence starts on September 16 away to Milan and ends on January 28, 2027 at home to AZ Alkmaar.

The most concentrated stretch comes in October: Benfica host Celtic on October 15 and, one week later, visit Omonia on October 22. UEFA has already published league-phase kick-off times; the times below are given in mainland Portugal time and should still be checked again close to each match because operational changes can occur.

Benfica's complete 2026/27 Europa League schedule

The team-by-team fixture list is published by UEFA, which also maintains a dedicated Benfica matches page.

October brings Celtic at home and Omonia away

October 15: Benfica vs Celtic

On Matchday 2, Benfica host Celtic. It is the club's first home game in this league phase, after opening the campaign away to Milan. Under UEFA's published schedule, kick-off is set for 20:00 in mainland Portugal.

For anyone following the home-and-away pattern, this is the first of Benfica's four home fixtures. The other home opponents are Lech Poznań, OFI Crete and AZ Alkmaar.

October 22: Omonia vs Benfica

Seven days later, Benfica return to Europa League action away to Omonia. The match in Cyprus is also listed at 20:00 in UEFA's mainland Portugal time schedule.

The short gap between the two matchdays makes October easy to miss in a calendar: there is no multi-week break between the European games on October 15 and 22. For readers who only need the venue order, it is straightforward: Celtic at home, Omonia away.

How the home and away split works

The draw gave Benfica four home opponents and four away opponents. At home they face Celtic, Lech Poznań, OFI Crete and AZ Alkmaar. Away, they play Milan, Omonia, Viktoria Plzeň and N.E.C..

This balance is built into the competition rules. Each club plays eight matches against eight different opponents, with four games at home and four away. The draw assigns two opponents from each pot, one at home and one away. UEFA's league-phase draw report lists Benfica's opponents and venues.

What is at stake in the league phase

The Europa League has 36 clubs in one league table. Each team plays eight matches but does not face every other participant. At the end of the league phase, teams ranked 1st to 8th qualify directly for the round of 16; teams ranked 9th to 24th enter the knockout phase play-offs; teams ranked 25th to 36th are eliminated.

That means the schedule is not a traditional group-stage round robin with home-and-away return fixtures. Each opponent is faced only once in the league phase, and the venue determined by the draw is not reversed against the same team.

Kick-off times: what is published and what to recheck

UEFA has already published the league-phase kick-off schedule. In the Portuguese version, times are shown for mainland Portugal. Six Benfica matches are listed at 20:00 and two at 17:45: Viktoria Plzeň vs Benfica on November 26 and N.E.C. vs Benfica on January 21.

Even with times published, it is sensible to check the official page again in the days before each match. Calendar changes can happen for operational, broadcast, security or organisational reasons. For travel planning, stadium access or broadcast scheduling, the latest official information should be treated as the final reference.

October at a glance

• 15/10/2026: Benfica vs Celtic, home, 20:00 in mainland Portugal.
• 22/10/2026: Omonia vs Benfica, away, 20:00 in mainland Portugal.

After that October doubleheader, Benfica return to Europa League action on November 5, when they host Lech Poznań.