Betis Returns to Champions League as 2025/26 Squad Shift Starts — Betis – Levante
Betis – Levante is over for the club’s season goals: Betis has already secured qualification for the next UEFA Champions League and now enters matchday 38 with several departures looming. After 20 years away, the return changes the tone of the final league day, and Manuel Pellegrini must manage both celebration and a squad that is starting to move on.
Pellegrini and the exits
Adrián San Miguel, Ricardo Rodríguez and Cédric Bakambu all finish their time at Betis on 30 June, and the club has not received any offer to renew any of those contracts. Sofyan Amrabat’s loan also ends, which sends him back to Fenerbahçe for the next campaign after Betis only paid part of his salary while using him in 2025/26.
Chimy Ávila is in a different position. He remains under contract until 2027, but Betis is considering ending that deal through a clause in the agreement. He had few minutes at the club and was close to leaving in midseason for the same issue, which makes his future the clearest pressure point inside a group already expected to change.
Champions League return
Betis’ return to the UEFA Champions League comes after 20 years of absence, and that alone changes the value of every decision made before the new season starts. The players now being discussed were important pieces in Pellegrini’s system during the campaign, so the club is weighing whether to keep continuity or use incoming money to strengthen for the next level.
Nelson Deossa, Sergi Altimira, Natan and Abde Ezzalzouli still have contracts in force, but Betis could receive offers for them. That leaves the club in a narrow window: protect the core that carried it into Europe’s top competition, or accept bids that could help reshape the squad around Champions League demands.
LaLiga matchday 38
Matchday 38 will be played with that split in mind. One part of the squad is closing a chapter, while another part is under review because the club is already planning for a Champions League season after a 20-year wait.
For Betis, the final league game is not just the end of LaLiga. It is the start of a roster turn that may decide how far this return can go.
