Surprise Elimination of Lech Poznan Complicates Hapoel Be'er Sheva's European Path

Lech Poznan's unexpected elimination from the UEFA Champions League qualifiers on July 29, 2026, could significantly impact Israeli champions Hapoel Be'er Sheva's seeding in the Europa League playoff round. If Lech Poznan loses to Icelandic club KÍ Klaksvík, the Icelandic team will inherit the Polish club's ranking points, affecting Be'er Sheva's status. Be'er Sheva will only be seeded in the Europa League playoff if Benfica fails to overturn a 2-1 first-leg loss against St. Gallen at home or if Ferencváros loses at home to Twente after winning 2-1 away in the Netherlands. Without a seeded position, Be'er Sheva would host their first leg in Hungary and play the second leg away.

Regardless of the outcome, Be'er Sheva has secured a spot in a European group stage. Should they lose in the third qualifying round of the Champions League and then in the Europa League playoff, they will enter the UEFA Conference League group stage. Potential opponents for Be'er Sheva in the Europa League playoff include Benfica or Hearts, Rangers or Jagiellonia, Ferencváros or Górnik Zabrze, Viktoria Plzeň, Mytilene or Karlovac, Salzburg or Hajduk Split, Qarabağ or CSKA Sofia (if they eliminate Maccabi Tel Aviv), Omonia Nicosia or Lincoln, Shamrock Rovers or Agenția Craiova, and Kuopio.

This development introduces uncertainty to Be'er Sheva's European campaign, with the club closely monitoring other match results to determine their seeding and match locations in the upcoming rounds.