The 1996–97 UEFA Champions League featured 24 teams, with eight teams (the league champions from the seven top-ranked nations in the UEFA country coefficient table, plus the defending champions from 1995–96) qualifying automatically for the group stage and the remaining 16 (the league champions of the nations ranked 8–23 in the country coefficient table) playing in a two-legged preliminary round. The winners of each tie entered the Champions League group stage, while the losers entered the UEFA Cup First Round.
Second leg
Fenerbahçe won 2–1 on aggregate.
Rangers won 10–3 on aggregate.
Rosenborg won 3–1 on aggregate.
IFK Göteborg won 4–1 on aggregate.
4–4 on aggregate. Widzew Łódź won on away goals.
Grasshopper won 6–0 on aggregate.
Steaua București won 5–2 on aggregate.
Rapid Wien won 6–2 on aggregate.