Data Analysis

Conference League Kicks Off: Ajax at Poljud, Monaco in Sofia and Freiburg Top of the Bundesliga

The league phase starts with 18 games on one night: three domestic leaders playing in Europe, two of last season's Champions League clubs and a 2024/25 opener repeated in Athens.

ScoreInPlay Data Desk14 October 2026

The Conference League league phase begins on Thursday with all 36 clubs in action: ten games kick off at 18:45 CEST and eight at 21:00 CEST. Here is what to watch.

Ajax visit the Croatian leaders

The pick of the early games is Hajduk Split vs Ajax at Poljud. Hajduk are top of the HNL after beating Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 last time out and have won five of their last six games. Ajax are fifth in the Eredivisie and arrive after two home draws in a row, 1-1 against NEC and 2-2 against Excelsior.

Monaco start in Sofia

Monaco are top of Ligue 1 with 14 points from six games, a run that includes a 2-1 win at Paris Saint-Germain. Their first league-phase game is away at CSKA Sofia, second in Bulgaria and winners of the Super Cup final 4-2 against Levski last month (CSKA Sofia vs Monaco).

Freiburg and Brighton arrive in form

Freiburg are top of the Bundesliga after five games and still unbeaten in the league; they host Czech side Jablonec (Freiburg vs Jablonec). Brighton are third in the Premier League, beat Arsenal 3-0 last month and host the Lithuanian leaders Kauno Žalgiris, who won their cup final 3-0 in their last game (Brighton vs Kauno Žalgiris).

Two leaders meet in Lugano

The early kick-off in Switzerland is a meeting of two domestic leaders. Lugano top the Swiss Super League and are unbeaten in five league games; Red Star Belgrade lead in Serbia and have won their last four league matches (Lugano vs Red Star).

Two clubs from last season's Champions League

Pafos and Kairat Almaty both played in the Champions League league phase last season. Pafos face Atalanta, the 2024 Europa League winners, in Bergamo (Atalanta vs Pafos); Kairat travel to Riga (Riga vs Kairat Almaty).

Did you know?

Panathinaikos and Borac Banja Luka also met on the first night of the 2024/25 league phase. That game, in Banja Luka, finished 1-1.
Universitatea Craiova have won their last four league games without conceding, including 5-0 against FCSB. They host Getafe, who have one win in their last five La Liga games.
Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar reached the league phase with a 3-0 win at Larne. They start away at Brann.
Inter Club d'Escaldes of Andorra are unbeaten in four league games this season and open at Mjällby.