The 2025/26 UEFA Europa League is fast approaching. Below is everything you need to know about who has qualified, when the next draw is and all the key dates for the upcoming season.
The Europa League draw and where to watch
The draw for the league phase of the Europa League will take place in Monaco on Friday August 29th from 12:00 BST, and you can watch it live on UEFA.com.
Teams who have qualified for the 25/26 Europa League:
England: Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest
Spain: Celta Vigo, Real Betis
Netherlands: Feyenoord, Go Ahead Eagles, Utrecht
Austria: Red Bull Salzburg, Sturm Graz, Basel
France: Lille, Nice, Olympique Lyonnais
Greece: Panathinaikos, PAOK
Serbia: Crvena Zvezda
Sweden: Malmo
Switzerland: Young Boys
Belgium: Genk
Romania: FCSB
Croatia: Dinamo Zagreb
Denmark: Midtjylland
Bulgaria: Ludogorets
Israel: Maccabi Tel Aviv
Norway: Brann
Turkiye: Fenerbahce
Hungary: Ferencvaros
Czechia: Viktoria Plzen
Follow the 2025/26 Europa League with Flashscore!
Key dates for the 25/26 UEFA Europa League
Draw for League Phase: August 29th
League Phase first matchday: September 24th-25th
League Phase last matchday: January 29th, 2026
Draw for knockout play-offs: January 30th
Knockout play-offs: February 19th (first legs), February 26th (second legs)
Final draw (for Round of 16 and beyond): February 27th, 2026
Round of 16: March 12th (first legs), March 19th (second legs)
Quarter-finals: April 9th (first legs), April 16th (second legs)
Semi-finals: April 30th (first legs), May 7th (second legs)
Final: May 20th
When and where is the 25/26 Europa League final
The Europa League final will take place on Wednesday, May 20th, 2026, at the Besiktas Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. The stadium is an all-seater with a capacity of approximately 42,590 spectators.
The winners of the final will enter the League Phase of the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League.
UEFA Europa League format explained
Ahead of the 2024/25 season, there was a big overhaul of UEFA’s cup competitions. Gone are the days of the group stage with pools - a 36-team 'League Phase' has replaced that format in the Champions League and Europa League.
This season, just like last, each of the 36 teams plays eight matches. The top eight at the end of the League Phase automatically qualify for the round of 16, while the bottom eight are eliminated and do not drop down to the Conference League.
Meanwhile, the teams that finished between ninth and 24th go into the knockout play-off round to decide which further eight will complete the round of 16. The final draw for the knockout stages takes place after the knockout play-off round.
The round of 16 sees the top eight (seeded) teams drawn against the other (unseeded) teams. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final follow as per typical cup competitions.