Chelsea haven’t qualified for European football’s premier club cup competition, but there’s a chance that Stamford Bridge will still host Champions League football this season.
The Blues finished the 2025-26 Premier League campaign in 10th place, meaning they will not be competing in any of UEFA’s three European competitions this term.
Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Liverpool secured Champions League football after finishing in positions 1st to 5th, while sixth-placed Bournemouth and seventh-placed Sunderland will compete in the Europa League.
Brighton took the final European spot after finishing 8th, but they still need to qualify in order to reach the Europa Conference League group stages.
Ninth-placed Brentford and 10th-placed Chelsea narrowly missed out on European competition. It was a particularly bitter blow for Chelsea, winners of the Europa League in 2019, Champions League in 2021 and Conference League in 2025.
However, the west London outfit can now focus on domestic competitions this season under the management of their new head coach Xabi Alonso, ranked as one world football's top 20 managers, who is in the process of transforming the Blues’ squad.
Morgan Rogers became the most expensive player in British football history after joining from Aston Villa in a deal worth £117 million, while veteran England internationals Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck are both poised to arrive.
England's Danny Welbeck (L) and Jordan Henderson during at 2012 press conference Related
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The English duo have a combined age of 71.
Stamford Bridge general viewReuters/Andrew Boyers
Although Chelsea will not be in this season’s Champions League, Stamford Bridge could still end up hosting a series of matches.
That’s because UEFA have prohibited Shakhtar Donetsk from hosting European fixtures in war-torn Ukraine for safety reasons.
Shakhtar, winners of Ukraine’s Premier League for a 16th time, are subsequently seeking a venue for their Champions League fixtures - and Stamford Bridge is one of the options, per The Standard.
Shakhtar Donetsk playersREUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay
“Shakhtar is currently negotiating with several venues in the United Kingdom and Germany in order to secure a host stadium for its UEFA Champions League matches next season,” an official spokesperson for Shakhtar said. “We will not comment on the process until a decision is announced in the near future.”
Shakhtar, currently managed by former Atletico Madrid and Barcelona star Arda Turan, will enter the Champions League when the league phase begins on September 8.
Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium and Fulham’s Craven Cottage are also among the London-based stadiums that could be an option for Shakhtar on Champions League nights.
Shakhtar’s 2024-25 Champions League matches were hosted at Schalke’s Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
But there’s a chance that Stamford Bridge will be the Ukrainian outfit’s ‘home’ stadium this season.