Portugal just one win away from sealing 6th place in UEFA rankings | OneFootball

It’s almost inevitable: AZ Alkmaar’s defeat this Thursday has simplified the scenario. With the Dutch side’s loss, Portugal now needs only one victory to secure sixth place.

The Dutch team was the last representative from the Netherlands in UEFA competitions and lost to Noah. Currently, the only way for the Netherlands to maintain sixth place is for AZ Alkmaar to win the Conference League final and, at the same time, for none of the four Portuguese teams still in the competition to achieve any further victories.

This means that if AZ Alkmaar is eliminated as early as next week, Portugal will confirm sixth place in the UEFA ranking. Even if that doesn’t happen, a single victory from Benfica (the only team playing in the play-offs), Sporting, FC Porto, or Braga will be enough to guarantee the spot.

If this comes to pass—which seems almost a mere formality—Portugal will have three teams in the Champions League in 2027/28 and could have up to six representatives in European competitions from that season onward.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.