site.btaSofia to Host European Football Leagues General Assembly

The Association of European Professional Football Leagues, more commonly known as the European Leagues, will hold its General Assembly in Sofia in the spring of 2026. Representatives of 40 professional football leagues in 34 countries, including England’s Premier League, Spain’s LaLiga, Germany’s Bundesliga, France’s Ligue 1 and Italy’s Serie A, will gather for the event, which will be hosted by the Bulgarian Professional Football League (BPFL).

The European Leagues General Assembly is the world’s third most important forum in association football after the FIFA and UEFA congresses.

The European Leagues represents the highest divisions in the football league systems of Albania, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Malta, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine. Other members are lower divisions such as the English Football League, Italy’s Serie B and C, and the Netherlands’ Eerste Divisie. The organization also has associated members: the Turkish Union of Clubs, 3. Liga (Germany) and the League of Ireland, while the Football Association of Wales has development member status.

The 50th European Leagues General Assembly was held in Frankfurt, Germany in 2025, when it was hosted by the Bundesliga. A year earlier, the Assembly was held in London, England, hosted by the Premier League.

BPFL President Atanas Karaivanov commented: “I want to express my sincere thanks to European Leagues President Claudius Schaefer, Vice President Mathieu Moreuil and the whole Board of Directors for trusting us to host an event of such scale. This is an exceptional honour for the BPFL and Bulgarian football in general. Sofia will welcome representatives of the leading professional football leagues, an event of unprecedented significance for our country. We are convinced we will live up to the task.”