Benfica climbs in UEFA rankings

According to information available on UEFA's official website, Benfica is currently ranked 11th in the European club rankings over the last five years. This ranking is used to determine the seedings for the draws of the three UEFA competitions, as well as to calculate one of the components of the distribution of performance-related prizes in the competitions (the European part of the value pillar).

Benfica is the only club not belonging to the five highest-ranked leagues in the top 17 positions, with Feyenoord coming in 18th. As for Portuguese clubs, there are four more in the top 100: FC Porto (28th), Sporting (29th), SC Braga (52nd), and Vitória SC (82nd).

With 2025/26 already underway, this ranking includes the last four seasons and the current one. During this period, Benfica has accumulated 77.75 points, the result of one appearance in the quarter-finals (2022/23) and two in the round of 16 (2021/22 and 2024/25) of the Champions League, and one in the quarter-finals of the Europa League with participation in the group stage of the Champions League (2023/24).

On its official website, UEFA has not yet included the points already secured by each club in the current season (2025/26). Thus, adding the points awarded for participation in the various competitions, Benfica moves up to 14th in the ranking. The outcome of the Champions League play-off will influence Benfica's ranking: if they qualify, they will move up to 10th place and be in pot 2; otherwise, they will remain in 14th place and belong to pot 1 of the Europa League.

This position in the 5-year ranking reflects the best performances in recent times compared to previous years. In 2021/22, Benfica was in 27th place based on the results obtained from 2017/18 until the end of that season, which highlights the improvement in the following seasons. This was indeed the lowest position since 2005/06, when it finished the season in 35th place (it had not scored any points in 2001/02 and 2002/03). Conversely, the highest position (5th) this century was recorded in 2013/14, after two consecutive seasons competing in the Europa League final.

In the 10-year ranking, used to determine the financial amount to be received for the non-European part of the value pillar of each UEFA competition, Benfica is also the highest-ranked Portuguese club. It is in 16th place, 3 above FC Porto and 12 above Sporting. And, once again, it has the highest score among clubs not belonging to the top 5 leagues.

Finally, reference to the four-year ranking based on sporting performance in the Champions League, which was used to determine the European clubs participating in the World Cup recently held in the United States of America and in which the Reds reached the round of 16, being eliminated by Chelsea, the winner of the competition. In 2024/25, Benfica earned 19 points, ranking 14th in the aforementioned ranking, which, maintaining the restriction of two clubs per country, puts it in a qualifying position for the next World Cup.