Hapoel Tel Aviv Advances to Conference League Playoff for First Time Since 2011

Hapoel Tel Aviv secured a significant European achievement on August 12, 2026, by advancing to the playoff round of the UEFA Conference League. The team defeated Polish side Katowice with a 3-2 aggregate score, winning the first leg 2-0 in Hungary and losing the second leg 2-1 in Poland. This marks the first time in 15 years that Hapoel has progressed through two consecutive rounds in a European competition, a feat last accomplished in the 2011/12 season when they eliminated Vaduz and Akernas en route to the Europa League group stage.

Looking ahead, Hapoel Tel Aviv will face Italian club Atalanta in the next round. Should they succeed, it would be their sixth appearance in a European group stage, noting that the current stage is a league round rather than a traditional group stage. Historically, Hapoel's best European results include reaching the UEFA Cup quarterfinals in 2001/02 and the Champions League group stage in 2010/11. This recent success revives hopes for further progress in European football for the Israeli club.