A total of 64 teams from 30
UEFA member associations participated in the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, all entering from the first round over six knock-out rounds. The association ranking based on the
UEFA country coefficients is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association: • Associations 1–3 each have four teams qualify. • Associations 4–8 each have three teams qualify. • Associations 9–21 each have two teams qualify. • Associations 22–32 each have one team qualify. Due to the ongoing English ban, their two berths were allocated to associations 10–11, each gaining a third berth.
Association ranking For the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, the associations are allocated places according to their 1987
UEFA country coefficients, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 1982–83 to 1986–87.
Teams The labels in parentheses show how each team qualified for competition: • TH: Title holders • CW: Cup winners • CR: Cup runners-up • LC: League Cup winners • 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc.: League position • P-W: End-of-season European competition play-offs winners == Schedule ==