2025–26 European Aquatics Champions League


The 2025–26 European Aquatics Champions League is the 63rd edition of European Aquatics's premier competition for men's water polo clubs, and the 15th edition since being rebranded from the Euroleague to the Champions League. The season begins on 19 September 2025 and ended on 13 June 2026 with the Final Four.
This will be the third straight season under the new format, however, this season will witness a change in slot allocation, with only the top two from domestic leagues being allowed to take part.
The winners of the European Aquatics Champions League automatically qualify for next season's edition and also qualify for the 2026 Super Cup.
FTC-Telekom are the defending champions.

Format

  • Qualification round
Ten teams will participate in the [|qualification round] in September 2025. The runners-up from national leagues ranked 1–10 and champions of the national leagues ranked 11–12 take part. The teams are divided into three separate groups, held in centralised venues. After round robin play, the top two teams in each group progress to the [|group stage].
  • Group stage
Sixteen teams will play in the group stage which is held between October 2025 to February 2026. The champions of national leagues ranked 1–10 plus the six clubs who advanced from the qualification round will compete. The participants are distributed into four groups of four. After home and away double round robin play, the top two from each group qualifies for the quarter-finals round while the bottom two drop down to the 2025–26 European Aquatics Euro Cup knockout stage.
  • Quarter-finals round
The eight advancing teams from the previous round are present and are split into two groups of four. The round is organised between March and May 2026. After home and away double round robin play, the top two from each group qualifies for the Final Four.
  • Final Four
In June 2026, the four remaining clubs travel to Malta's capital, Valletta, to try and obtain the Champions League trophy. Two semifinals, a third place game and final will take place to decide the champions.

Rankings

The results were based on the results of the past four seasons.
  • Associations 1–10 can have two teams ranked 1st and 2nd qualify.
  • Associations 11–12 can have one team ranked 1st qualify.
RankAssociationPointsTeams
1

Ranking facts

Leaving entries
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Teams

Starting this season, only the champions and runners-up teams from national leagues ranked 1–10 and champions from national leagues ranked 11–12 are permitted to enter. Starting this season, champions from countries ranked below the top 12 are not permitted to enter.
The Champions League and, for the first time, Euro Cup winners are granted a place in the Champions League group stage and qualification round respectively.
Unlike last season, in the event that a club decides not to enter, the third place team is not allowed to take their place.

Qualified teams

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
  • CL: Champions League title holders
  • EC: Euro Cup title holders
  • 1st, 2nd,: League positions of the previous season

Name changes

The following teams' names were changed during the season.

Qualification round

The group winners and runners-up qualify for the group stage, while everyone else drops down to the Euro Cup qualifiers. The draw was on 28 July 2025 in Zagreb, Croatia. The seeding is based off the club rankings.

Group A

19–21 September 2025, Belgrade, Serbia

Group B

19–21 September 2025, Sabadell, Spain

Group C

19–21 September 2025, Zagreb, Croatia

Group stage

The top two from each group make the quarter-finals round. The bottom two from each group drops down to the Euro Cup eighth-finals.
Teams are ranked according to points, and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:
  • Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  • Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  • Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  • Goal difference in all group matches;
  • Goals scored in all group matches.
This season, 13 of the 16 clubs from last season are present. HAVK Mladost Zagreb comes back after six years, while Italian sides, Pro Recco and AN Brescia return after a one edition absence.
Overall, a total of 10 countries are present in the group stage, down by one largely due to the restructuring of the European water polo competitions. Georgia are not present in the group stage for the first time since 2018–19.