UEFA Futsal Champions League Main Round Preview: Sporting CP, Barça and Benfica Chase the Last 16
Europe’s biggest club futsal week is here. The UEFA Futsal Champions League main round runs from 27 to 31 October, with 32 clubs split across eight mini-tournaments and only 16 places in the knockout phase up for grabs. The round of 16 and quarter-finals will be drawn on 4 November, and the road ends at the four-team finals from 7 to 9 May 2027 at the Biel/Bienne Arena in Switzerland. If you are still getting to know the indoor game, our guide to what futsal is explains why the small court produces so much end-to-end drama.
Path A: the holders and the heavyweights
In Path A, the top three teams in each group go through to the round of 16, so every mini-tournament game carries real weight. Group 1, hosted by Lučenec in Slovakia, pairs four-time champions Barça with Semey of Kazakhstan, the hosts, and Swiss side Futsal Minerva. Barça open against Minerva on Wednesday 28 October at 16:00 Spanish time, face Semey on Thursday 29 October at 16:00, and close against hosts Lučenec on Saturday 31 October at 18:00.
Group 2 has already been settled in unusual fashion. Romanian side United Galati withdrew, and UEFA ruled all three of their matches forfeited 5-0, so Kairat Almaty, hosts Sporting Anderlecht and Latvian debutants TFK Beitar are already through to the round of 16. Kairat, two-time champions entering for a record 23rd time, will still want the group games to build momentum, while Beitar get a dream European debut with nothing to lose.
Holders Sporting CP headline Group 3, hosted by Olmissum in Croatia, where the holders meet French side Étoile Lavalloise, the hosts, and Stalitsa Minsk of Belarus. Sporting won their third title last season, while Étoile also reached last season’s finals. Group 4, hosted by Tigers Roermond in the Netherlands, looks just as tough: Benfica, champions in 2009-10, face two-time runners-up ElPozo Murcia, HIT Kyiv of Ukraine, and the hosts, who are chasing a first-ever trip to the last 16.
Path B and the road to Biel/Bienne
Path B completes the picture, with the four group winners joining the 12 Path A qualifiers in the round of 16. Group 5 (27–30 October) is hosted by Piast Gliwice of Poland alongside Araz-Naxçivan, Buba Mara and Újpest; Group 6 (27–30 October) sends Kauno Žalgiris to Differdange 03’s mini-tournament with Doukas and Unisport. Group 7 (28–31 October) is hosted by L84 Torino with Luxol St. Andrews, Futsal Mad Max and Hjørring, while Group 8 (28–31 October) is hosted by Loznica-Grad 2018 with Athletic Futsal, Athletic Club Graz and Chrudim.
From there, the knockout phase is two-legged all the way: the round of 16 is played on 23 November and 4 December, and the quarter-finals on 8 and 19 February, before the finals in Biel/Bienne in May. Played under standard futsal rules, with rolling substitutions and a relentless tempo, this is the week when Europe’s club season really catches fire — and by Saturday night, we will know exactly which 16 clubs are still dreaming of the trophy.
