Only four Ekstraklasa clubs have qualified for the last 16 of the Polish Cup, Sport.pl reported on 30 October 2026. That leaves 14 of the 18 top-flight sides — 78 percent of the field — eliminated before the round of 16, the smallest top-tier contingent at this stage since the competition was last reformed.
The survivors are joined in the draw by six teams from the second-tier 1. Liga, four from the 2. Liga and two from the 3. Liga, Poland's fourth level. The round-of-16 pairings have already been drawn, with Bruk-Bet Termalica set to face Jagiellonia Białystok, Górnik Zabrze travelling to Avia Świdnik, and a notable fixture drawn in Warsaw, according to Sport.pl and other Polish outlets.
Why it matters
The winner of this season's Polish Cup enters the fourth qualifying round of the Europa League playoff, which guarantees at least a place in the Conference League. Sport.pl notes that the outcome therefore carries weight beyond domestic prestige: the result feeds directly into Poland's UEFA coefficient, which the country is building in pursuit of a Champions League place.
A final involving a club from the lower leagues would put that European berth in unfamiliar hands, and Sport.pl frames the current state of the draw as raising the prospect of Polonia Środa Wielkopolska or Sokół Kleczew reaching the final at the National Stadium.
How the top-flight sides fell
Sport.pl describes the exits as a mixture of upsets and self-inflicted damage. Siarka Tarnobrzeg, a mid-table third-tier club that Sport.pl says is itself in the middle of a rebuild, eliminated Zagłębie Lubin and then the reigning Polish champions. The outlet directs criticism at Lech for fielding a reserve lineup against an opponent two divisions below and treating the trip to Tarnobrzeg as a formality.
GKS Katowice, a side competing for European qualification, lost to a second-tier club from Łęczna. Radomiak went out to Avia Świdnik, also of the 2. Liga; Avia had earlier knocked out Wieczysta, an Ekstraklasa club Sport.pl describes as assembled at a cost of millions of euros. Śląsk Wrocław, leading until the closing minutes and fielding several younger players, lost to Odra Opole, who sit second from bottom in the 1. Liga.
A French comparison
Sport.pl places the results in a wider context by pointing to France, where cup exits for professional sides against amateur opposition are routine. Over the past 15 years, the outlet reports, the chance of a Ligue 1 or Ligue 2 club losing to a team from the fourth tier or below stands above 20 percent. That is why Coupe de France finals have occasionally featured fourth-tier Calais in 2000 and third-tier Quevilly in 2012 and Les Herbiers in 2018.
Poland's cup format and regulations are close to France's, Sport.pl notes, yet Polish finals have rarely featured clubs from outside the Ekstraklasa — though Wisła Kraków's recent run brought such finalists back. The outlet asks whether this season will prove distinctly French in character, with outsiders now setting the tone.
Sport.pl also raises the question of whether the rules adequately protect the strongest clubs, and whether the gap in quality is narrowing or the favourites simply took the competition lightly. It does not settle on a single explanation.
What to watch
The last-16 ties will show whether the remaining top-flight sides can steady themselves or whether the lower-league contingent continues to shape the competition. The European stake attached to the trophy means the answer will be felt well beyond the cup itself.
