- August 6, 2026
- 7:33 pm
- Israel, Ukraine
Ukraine is currently ahead of Israel in the UEFA national associations ranking, but out of four Ukrainian clubs, only two continue the fight. Israel has retained all its representatives, so the August matches could significantly reduce the gap.
Ukraine has dropped to 23rd place in the five-year UEFA national associations ranking. Israel is in 25th position but has retained all four teams in the European competitions and is gradually closing the gap.
At first glance, the situation looks dangerous for Ukrainian football: Ukraine has two participants left out of four, while Israel has four out of four. But a simple comparison of the number of clubs does not show the whole picture. ‘Shakhtar’ has already guaranteed Ukraine a significant part of the seasonal coefficient thanks to a direct place in the league stage of the Champions League.
NAnews checked the interim table, UEFA points allocation rules, and the contribution of each Ukrainian and Israeli club. The data in this material is recorded on August 6, 2026, before the completion of the evening European competition program. Since matches take place almost every week, individual indicators may change immediately after the next game day.
What is this UEFA ranking anyway
This is not about the national teams ranking or the list of the strongest European clubs. It is the five-year coefficient of UEFA national football associations.
UEFA takes into account the results of clubs from each country in three tournaments:
- Champions League;
- Europa League;
- Conference League.
For the 2027 ranking, the results of five seasons are summed up — from 2022/23 to 2026/27. Based on the final position, it is determined how many teams each country can send to future European competitions and from which stages they will start qualifying.
But there is a fundamentally important delay here.
Places in the 2026/27 European competitions were distributed according to the coefficients recorded after the end of the 2024/25 season. Therefore, the results that Ukraine and Israel show in the summer and autumn of 2026 will not change the composition of the current season. They will be significant for later distribution, tentatively for the 2028/29 European competitions.
Therefore, it cannot be said that Ukraine has already ‘lost a place in the Champions League’ or that Israel will immediately receive an additional ticket. The position for the future is being formed now.
How clubs earn points for the country
In the qualifying rounds and playoffs, the following rules apply:
- a win brings 1 point;
- a draw — 0.5;
- a loss — 0.
Starting from the league stage, the value of the result doubles:
- a win — 2 points;
- a draw — 1;
- a loss — 0.
All points of the clubs from one country are summed up and then divided by the initial number of participants. Ukraine and Israel started the season with four teams, so their divisor is four. It does not decrease after a club is eliminated.
This results in a simple practical formula:
- a win by a Ukrainian or Israeli club in qualification adds 0.250 to the country;
- a draw in qualification — 0.125;
- a win in the league stage — 0.500;
- a draw in the league stage — 0.250.
That is why reaching the main stage is so important. One win by ‘Shakhtar’ in the Champions League will be worth as much for the national ranking as two wins by Israeli clubs in the qualifying rounds.
In addition to match results, UEFA awards bonuses for participation in certain stages, placement in the overall league stage table, and further advancement. For reaching each round starting from the 1/8 finals, a club receives an additional 1.5 points in the Champions League, 1 point in the Europa League, or 0.5 points in the Conference League.
Why penalty shootouts do not help the ranking
The result of a penalty shootout determines which club will advance, but it does not bring additional points to the country’s coefficient.
UEFA considers the match score before the penalty shootout. If the match ended in a draw, both countries receive points for the draw — regardless of who then won the shootout.
This rule has already affected both Ukraine and Israel. Kyiv ‘Dynamo’ passed Romanian ‘Universitatea’ Cluj on penalties, but for the ranking, both matches remained draws. LNZ, on the other hand, was eliminated by Belgian ‘Gent’ in a penalty shootout but also brought Ukraine points for two draws.
Jerusalem ‘Beitar’ defeated AEK Larnaca in a penalty shootout, but Israel received points only for one win in the two-legged tie.
Ukraine — 23rd, Israel — 25th
At the time of checking, the nearest part of the five-year ranking looked like this:
Croatia was in 22nd place with a coefficient of 24.031. Ukraine was 23rd — 23.837. Next were Slovenia with a score of 22.468 and Israel — 22.375. Azerbaijan was in 26th position with a coefficient of 21.187.
Thus, Ukraine was only 0.194 behind Croatia but was ahead of Israel by 1.462.
In terms of regular qualification results, the gap between Ukraine and Israel is approximately equal to six wins by one Israeli club without a corresponding set of points by Ukrainian teams.
However, the situation is more complex. Israel indeed has more active participants, but ‘Shakhtar’ is already in the league stage of the Champions League, where wins and draws are valued twice as much.
Where does Ukraine’s coefficient of 2.125 come from
In the 2026/27 season, Ukrainian clubs at the time of checking had not won a single match. They played five draws and suffered three defeats.
Despite this, Ukraine’s seasonal coefficient was 2.125, which was higher than Israel’s figure.
The secret lies in the six bonus points of ‘Shakhtar’. In total, Ukrainian teams collected 8.5 conditional points. After dividing by four, it turned out to be 2.125.
‘Shakhtar’: six points even before the first match
‘Shakhtar’ received a direct place in the league stage of the Champions League after the redistribution of tickets. UEFA officially confirmed the automatic qualification of the Ukrainian club on May 18, 2026.
For participation in the league stage, the club was awarded six bonus points. After dividing by four, this immediately gave Ukraine 1.500 national coefficient.
In other words, more than 70% of the entire Ukrainian result at the beginning of the season was provided by one club, which had not even played its first Champions League match yet.
This is both an advantage and a risk. Ukraine has already received a guaranteed bonus, but further growth will largely depend on ‘Shakhtar’s’ results against significantly stronger opponents.
‘Dynamo’ Kyiv: four matches without a win
Kyiv ‘Dynamo’ started in the Europa League qualification.
In the first round, the Ukrainian club played 0:0 twice with ‘Universitatea’ Cluj and advanced after winning the penalty shootout — 4:2. These two draws brought the country one point before division.
In the second round, ‘Dynamo’ lost twice to Greek PAOK — 2:3 and 0:2. After being eliminated from the Europa League, the Kyiv team moved to the Conference League qualification, where the next opponent was Azerbaijani ‘Qarabag’.
The overall contribution of ‘Dynamo’ at this stage is one point, or 0.250 in the national coefficient.
LNZ: two draws and elimination
Cherkasy LNZ played 0:0 twice with Belgian ‘Gent’ but lost in the penalty shootout — 2:4.
The elimination did not nullify the result. Two draws brought Ukraine one point, which after division turned into 0.250 national coefficient.
‘Polissya’: one productive draw
Zhytomyr ‘Polissya’ faced ‘Copenhagen’. The first match ended with a score of 3:3, in the second the Ukrainian club lost 1:2.
For the draw, Ukraine received 0.5 points before division, or 0.125 in the country’s ranking. After this, ‘Polissya’ ended its European competition season.
As a result, ‘Shakhtar’ and ‘Dynamo’ continue to compete for Ukraine. LNZ and ‘Polissya’ have already been eliminated.
Israel retained all four clubs
Israeli teams played nine qualifying matches and showed significantly more convincing statistics: six wins, one draw, and two losses.
The total amounted to 6.5 points. After division by four, Israel’s seasonal coefficient reached 1.625.
Unlike Ukraine, Israel has not yet received bonuses for guaranteed participation in the league stage. Almost the entire result was earned directly on the field.
‘Hapoel’ Be’er Sheva
The Israeli champion started from the second qualifying round of the Champions League.
In the away match against Icelandic ‘Vikingur’, the team lost 1:2, but at home won 2:0 and advanced further. In the first match of the next round, ‘Hapoel’ Be’er Sheva defeated Belgrade ‘Crvena Zvezda’ — 1:0.
Two wins brought Israel two points before division, or 0.500 national coefficient.
The advancement of ‘Hapoel’ is especially important: even in case of elimination from the Champions League, the transition system may allow the club to continue the season in another European competition.
‘Maccabi’ Tel Aviv
‘Maccabi’ Tel Aviv began its Europa League campaign with two wins over Moldovan ‘Sheriff’ — 5:0 and 1:0.
These results brought Israel another two points, or 0.500 after division. The next opponent of the club was Sofia CSKA.
‘Hapoel’ Tel Aviv
In the Conference League, ‘Hapoel’ Tel Aviv defeated Bulgarian ‘Ludogorets’ with a score of 2:0, and in the second match played 2:2.
One win and one draw gave Israel 1.5 points before division, or 0.375 national coefficient. The next opponent is Polish GKS Katowice.
‘Beitar’ Jerusalem
Jerusalem ‘Beitar’ defeated AEK Larnaca 1:0, then lost 2:3. With an equal overall score, the Israeli club won the penalty shootout — 4:3.
In the ranking, only one win is counted. The loss brought zero, and the penalty shootout did not give additional points. In the next round, ‘Beitar’s’ opponent was Vienna ‘Austria’.
Why four Israeli clubs are not yet a guarantee of overtaking
Retaining all representatives indeed gives Israel a serious advantage. The country has more matches and, accordingly, more opportunities to score points.
But four clubs in qualification do not necessarily earn more than one participant in the league stage of the Champions League.
For comparison:
- one win by an Israeli club in qualification gives the country 0.250;
- one win by ‘Shakhtar’ in the league stage will give Ukraine 0.500;
- one draw by ‘Shakhtar’ will be equal to one qualification win by an Israeli team.
Bonuses for placement in the overall table and advancement to the playoffs can be added to this.
Therefore, the main question is not how many teams remained on August 6, but how many of them will reach the league stages.
For Israel, the most advantageous scenario is the advancement of two or three clubs to the main part of the European competitions. Then the country will receive a long series of matches, full points for wins, and the opportunity to collect bonuses.
For Ukraine, it is critically important that ‘Dynamo’ does not end the season in August. If all the burden remains on one ‘Shakhtar’, the advantage over Israel may quickly disappear.
What this ranking means for Israel
For Israeli fans, the fight with Ukraine is not a symbolic competition between countries.
A higher position may in subsequent seasons:
- improve the starting rounds for the Israeli champion;
- reduce the number of qualifying barriers;
- increase the likelihood of clubs reaching the league stages;
- provide more international matches and commercial revenues;
- improve conditions for forming club coefficients.
At the same time, the five-year system does not allow changing the position with just one successful month. Israel still carries relatively weak results from the two previous seasons in the overall total — 2.875. Ukraine, on the other hand, received 8.312 in the 2025/26 season, primarily thanks to Shakhtar’s performance.
For NANews — Israel News it is especially important to separate two different tables here. The national coefficient determines the country’s representation and the starting positions of its clubs. The club coefficient is mainly used when seeding a specific team in draws.
The club rating is calculated based on the team’s results over five seasons or is taken as equal to 20% of its national association’s coefficient — the greater value is used.
What will happen next
The upcoming qualifying matches can change the difference between Ukraine and Israel by 0.125–0.500 in one evening.
Ukraine maintains a small margin and a guaranteed participant in the Champions League. Israel has a broader front: four clubs continue to compete, with each having already secured at least one victory.
Editorial conclusion NANews — Israel News: Ukraine’s position is still more stable than it seems with a simple count of the remaining teams, but in the long term, it depends almost entirely on Shakhtar. Israel started without bonuses, but is gaining points directly in matches and has retained the opportunity to bring several clubs to the main stages.
If Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Be’er Sheva, Hapoel Tel Aviv, and Beitar continue the season after August, Ukraine’s lead may disappear even before the league stages begin. However, if Israeli clubs are massively eliminated, the advantage will shift to Ukraine: one team in the Champions League can bring more ranking points than several participants in early qualification.
Data boundaries and sources
The material was prepared by the NANews editorial team based on the official regulations and explanations of UEFA, interim calculations of the Bert Kassies coefficient database, and the publication of the Ukrainian football edition Terrikon.
The coefficient table is dynamic. The figures recorded in the article refer to the interim state as of August 6, 2026, before the end of the evening matches. The final positions will only be known after the end of the European club season.