To help you follow every step on the road to the final in May, we explain all you need to know about the upcoming 2026/27 Europa League season below, from the key dates to the draws, teams, and format of the competition.
How does the qualifying phase work?
17 teams have already directly qualified for the league phase. The remaining 19 spots are decided in a variety of ways. 12 teams will join the league phase via the qualifying phase, which ends with the play-offs in late August, played over two legs, while seven clubs will also drop down into the Europa League after losing the Champions League play-offs.
Dates for the Europa League qualifying rounds
First qualifying round: July 9th and 16th, 2026
Second qualifying round: July 23rd and 30th, 2026
Third qualifying round: August 6th and 13th, 2026
Play-offs: August 20th and 27th, 2026
Follow the Europa League qualifiers with Flashscore!
Which teams have already qualified?
The following 17 teams have already qualified for the Europa League proper:
AZ (NED); Bournemouth (ENG); Celta Vigo (ESP); Crystal Palace (ENG); Hoffenheim (GER); Juventus (ITA); Bayer Leverkusen (GER); Marseille (FRA); AC Milan (ITA); Olympiacos (GRE); Real Sociedad (ESP); Rennes (FRA); Sparta Prague (CZE); Sturm Graz (AUT); Sunderland (ENG); Torreense (POR); Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL).
When are the various Europa League draws?
First qualifying round: June 16th, 2026
Second qualifying round: June 17th, 2026
Third qualifying round: July 20th, 2026
Play-offs: August 3rd, 2026
League phase: August 28th, 2026
Knockout round play-offs: January 29th, 2027
Round of 16 and final bracket: February 26th, 2027
How does the league phase draw work?
The draw for the main phase of the Europa League takes place from 13:00 CET on Friday, August 28th, in Monaco. The ceremony is a combined event for the Europa and Conference League draws and can be streamed on UEFA.com.
For the draw, the 36 teams that qualify for the tournament are placed into four pots, with one being the highest-ranked and four being the lowest. The pot placements are based on UEFA's club coefficient ranking from the five-season period ending at the conclusion of 2025/26.
The draw determines each side's eight fixtures for the league phase, with every team drawing two teams from each of the four pots. However, they cannot face a team from the same country as themselves.
The format of the Europa League
The teams who finish in the top eight of the league phase after the eight Matchdays qualify for the Europa League's Round of 16. Those between ninth and 24th will enter the play-off knockout round. The 12 teams ranked between 25th and 36th will exit the competition when the league phase is concluded.
When are the league phase matchdays?
Matchday 1: September 16th-17th, 2026
Matchday 2: October 15th, 2026
Matchday 3: October 22nd, 2026
Matchday 4: November 5th, 2026
Matchday 5: November 26th, 2026
Matchday 6: December 10th, 2026
Matchday 7: January 21st, 2027
Matchday 8: January 28th, 2027
When are the knockout rounds played?
Knockout play-offs: February 18th and 25th, 2027
Round of 16: March 11th and 18th, 2027
Quarter-finals: April 8th and 15th, 2027
Semi-finals: April 29th and May 6th, 2027
Final: May 26th, 2027
When and where is the Europa League final?
The final will be staged on Wednesday, May 26th, 2027, at Frankfurt's Waldstadion in Germany, currently known as Deutsche Bank Park for sponsorship purposes; it is a retractable-roof stadium and the home ground of Eintracht Frankfurt.