Europa League Matchday 1: All 18 Fixtures, the Thursday-Night Map, and the Shirt to Wear
The 2026/27 Europa League league phase opens on Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 September with 18 matches across two nights: Milan v Benfica at San Siro, Juventus back in Europe at home to N.E.C., Real Sociedad v Bournemouth, Celtic under the lights at Parkhead, and Beşiktaş v Marseille. Here is every fixture, the six nights that will move the shirt market, and what to wear for them.
Matchday 1: Quick Answers
- When: Wednesday 16 – Thursday 17 September 2026, 18 matches — nine per night.
- Headliners: Milan v Benfica (Wed), Juventus v N.E.C. (Thu), Real Sociedad v Bournemouth (Thu).
- Final scores: Milan 0-2 Benfica · Juventus 5-0 N.E.C. · Real Sociedad 1-2 Bournemouth · Celtic 1-3 Ferencváros · Beşiktaş 4-1 Marseille · Sunderland 1-0 AZ Alkmaar.
- Kick-off times: 21:00 CET / 15:00 ET; early window 18:45 CET / 12:45 ET.
- Format: 36 clubs, one league table, eight games each — top 8 reach the round of 16.
- League phase runs until: 28 January 2027.
- Final: 26 May 2027 at Stadion Frankfurt.
How the 2026/27 Europa League league phase works
This is the third season of the 36-team single-league format. Every club plays eight matches against eight different opponents — four at home, four away — and all 36 sides sit in one table rather than groups. The top eight go straight to the round of 16; clubs finishing 9th to 24th enter a two-legged knockout play-off, and the bottom 12 are out of Europe entirely.
The league phase runs from 16 September 2026 through to 28 January 2027, and it finishes at Stadion Frankfurt on 26 May 2027. One practical point for shirt buyers: because the Europa League owns Thursday, an opening-round jersey gets its own night rather than competing with the Champions League fixtures running on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Matchday 1 results
Every scoreline from both nights, with the reaction and the shirts that moved:
All 18 Matchday 1 fixtures
| Date | Kick-off (CET / ET) | Fixture | Demand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 16 Sep | 18:45 / 12:45 | Ararat-Armenia v Sparta Praha — 1-4 | ☆☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 18:45 / 12:45 | Omonia v Celta Vigo — 1-0 | ★☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Milan v Benfica — 0-2 | ★★★ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Bayer Leverkusen v Celje — 2-0 | ★★☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Anderlecht v Lyon — 1-2 | ★☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Olympiacos v Jagiellonia Białystok — 2-1 | ★☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Hapoel Beer-Sheva v Dinamo Zagreb — 0-0 | ★☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Sturm Graz v Rennes — 0-0 | ★☆☆ |
| Wed 16 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Sunderland v AZ Alkmaar — 1-0 | ★★☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 18:45 / 12:45 | OFI Crete v Hoffenheim — 2-0 | ★☆☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 18:45 / 12:45 | Levski Sofia v Salzburg — 0-1 | ★☆☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Beşiktaş v Marseille — 4-1 | ★★☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Celtic v Ferencváros — 1-3 | ★★☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Viktoria Plzeň v Union Saint-Gilloise — 0-3 | ☆☆☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Crystal Palace v Lech Poznań — 4-0 | ★★☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Juventus v N.E.C. — 5-0 | ★★★ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Lillestrøm v Torreense — 1-2 | ☆☆☆ |
| Thu 17 Sep | 21:00 / 15:00 | Real Sociedad v Bournemouth — 1-2 | ★★★ |
All 18 fixtures as published by UEFA, times in CET with US Eastern conversion. The headline games kick off at 3 p.m. ET, and the Europa League’s Thursday slot means the marquee matches do not collide with Champions League Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Demand stars reflect how quickly the participating clubs’ shirts typically move in the first 72 hours of a European campaign, based on our own order flow — not a prediction of results.
Matchday 1 shirt demand index: where the first rush lands
Europa League demand behaves differently from the Champions League. It is less about global superclubs and more about three things: a famous shirt returning to Europe, a first-ever European night, and travelling support. We tiered all 18 fixtures by how quickly the participating shirts historically move once the campaign starts. This is a demand guide based on our own order flow, not a prediction of results.
Matchday 1 results & the 72-hour demand read — all 18 fixtures are complete; updated 18 September 2026.
Benfica won 2-0 at San Siro for their first-ever victory over Milan, Juventus opened with a 5-0 win against N.E.C., and Bournemouth marked their European debut by winning 2-1 at Real Sociedad. Sunderland beat AZ Alkmaar 1-0 in their first European match since 1973, Ferencváros won 3-1 at Celtic Park, and Beşiktaş beat Marseille 4-1.
In the 72 hours after the round, the shirts that moved fastest in our own order flow were the away winners and the debutants — Benfica, Bournemouth, Sunderland and Ferencváros all outperformed the tier we set for them before kick-off. Juventus and Crystal Palace (4-0 v Lech Poznań) simply held their pre-match positions. Milan and Celtic shirts cooled slightly after home defeats, which is usually the better window to buy: the shirt does not change, only the queue does.
Two of Italy’s biggest shirts open at home in Europe, and Milan host the most decorated club in Portuguese football at San Siro. Juventus’ first European night of the season always lands hard, and the Real Sociedad v Bournemouth meeting is the kind of fresh, never-played-before fixture that collectors move on early — there is no back catalogue for it.
First-nights and loud-nights. Sunderland and Crystal Palace are both in the league phase with a point to prove and a fanbase that travels; Celtic Park under the lights is one of the great European atmospheres; Beşiktaş v Marseille is the most volatile tie on the list; and Leverkusen’s shirts carry a consistent Bundesliga-plus-Europe baseline.
Omonia v Celta, Anderlecht v Lyon, Olympiacos v Jagiellonia, Hapoel Beer-Sheva v Dinamo Zagreb, Sturm Graz v Rennes, OFI Crete v Hoffenheim, Levski Sofia v Salzburg, Viktoria Plzeň v Union SG, Lillestrøm v Torreense and Ararat-Armenia v Sparta Praha. Celta, Lyon, Hoffenheim and Salzburg shirts sell steadily all season; the rest are for the collector who plans early and wants the shirt nobody else in the pub will have.
The six nights that will shape the round
Milan v Benfica (Wednesday, San Siro). The tie of the round, and not close. Milan at home in Europe is still the heaviest shirt night in Italian football, and Benfica arrive with the largest away following in the competition. Our AC Milan collection and Benfica collection both move in the 48 hours before a night like this.
Juventus v N.E.C. (Thursday, Allianz Stadium). Juventus open at home against the Dutch side making only their second appearance at this level. The Bianconeri shirt is a permanent fixture in our European order flow, and an opening night in Turin reliably pulls both the home and the away version. Shop the Juventus collection.
Real Sociedad v Bournemouth (Thursday, Reale Arena). A fixture with no history, which is exactly why it matters to collectors. Two shirts that have never shared a European night, in one of the best atmospheres in Spain. Bournemouth’s first sustained European campaign is the single biggest new demand story of the round.
Celtic v Ferencváros (Thursday, Celtic Park). Parkhead on a European night is its own category of event, and the travelling Hungarian support will fill a corner of it. Celtic's home shirt carries a year-round baseline demand that a European opener reliably doubles.
Beşiktaş v Marseille (Thursday, Türpraş Stadyumu). The most atmospheric away trip in the draw and a genuine collector’s fixture — Marseille’s white away is one of the most recognisable shirts in Europe and rarely sits still once the campaign begins.
Sunderland v AZ Alkmaar (Wednesday, Stadium of Light). A first European night at the Stadium of Light in a generation. First-nights behave differently from routine ones: the shirt sells to people who would not normally buy, and it sells out of nostalgia as much as support.
Eight shirts for Matchday 1
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Shop 2026-2027 AC Milan Authentic Home Shirt (Odogu 27)
Benfica Home Jersey 2026/27
Juventus Home Jersey 2026/27
Real Sociedad Home Jersey 2026/27
Bournemouth Home Jersey 2026/27
Crystal Palace Away Jersey 2025/26
Sunderland Home Jersey 2025/26
Celta Vigo Home Jersey 2026/27
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