Established in 1971 following the abolition of the short-lived Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the Europa League was previously known under a different guise. It serves as the predecessor to the UEFA Cup, a competition that embraced a single-elimination knockout format for the vast majority of its 37-year existence.
The UEFA Cup moniker was discarded after the conclusion of the 2008/09 campaign, when Shakhtar Donetsk defeated Bundesliga outfit Werder Bremen in Istanbul – the same city that will host this year’s final – to become just the second Ukrainian club to clinch a major European trophy.
Before the turn of the millennium, the UEFA Cup ran parallel to the more prestigious UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup. Italian giants Lazio were the last-ever champions of this tournament, which disbanded in 1999 after 39 seasons in operation. This inevitably elevated the UEFA Cup’s profile, as it was now only secondary to the Champions League. The introduction of the Conference League has cemented the Europa League’s status as the continent’s second strongest competition, with the promise of direct Champions League entry for the winners further enhancing its reputation.
Atalanta became the 30th club to win the UEFA Cup/Europa League when they comfortably dispatched Bayer Leverkusen in the 2024 final, while Spurs are the current reigning champions thanks to last May’s 1-0 triumph over fellow English side Manchester United.
Serial champions
Having won the competition on no less than seven separate occasions, Sevilla are undoubtedly the most successful team in Europa League history. Remarkably, the Andalusians acquired all of this silverware within a 17-year window, landing their maiden continental title exactly two decades ago before claiming their seventh Europa League success in 2023.
Here’s an overview of their previous successes:
2005/06 – A long-awaited breakthrough
Prior to winning the 2005/06 UEFA Cup, Sevilla hadn’t claimed a single piece of silverware for almost six decades. Los Nervionenses faced Russian opposition six times during that memorable campaign, with a Round of 32 triumph over Lokomotiv Moscow bookending group stage and quarter-final clashes against Zenit Saint Petersburg.
On a famous night in Eindhoven, the Spaniards swept aside unlikely finalists Middlesbrough thanks to goals from Luís Fabiano, Frédéric Kanouté, and Enzo Maresca’s quick-fire brace.
2006/07 – Defending their crown
Having progressed to the knockout stages as Group C runners-up, Sevilla were forced to navigate several tricky ties en route to the final. Juande Ramos masterminded victories over Steaua Bucharest, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Tottenham Hotspur, who would later appoint the Spanish tactician following the departure of Martin Jol six months later.
Frédéric Kanouté scored against his former employers at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán and in North London, before temporarily putting Sevilla ahead in an all-Spanish final. Although his extra-time strike was later cancelled out by Espanyol’s Jônatas, the Malian striker sent his team on the path to victory by converting the opening spot-kick in the subsequent shootout.
2013/14 – The first of three-in-a-row
Despite sailing through the group stage, Sevilla found the going extremely tough in their opening knockout fixture. Following a 2-2 draw with Maribor in the opening leg, Unai Emery’s side secured a narrow victory in Seville to edge their way into the last sixteen.
After eliminating cross-city rivals Real Betis via a penalty shootout, Sevilla once again leveraged their impressive spot-kick capabilities in the final. Misses from Benfica’s Óscar Cardozo and Rodrigo handed a golden opportunity to experienced frontman Kevin Gameiro, who lashed the ball beyond Jan Oblak to spark wild celebrations at the Allianz Arena.
2014/15 – A much-needed security blanket
The defending champions struggled to assert their dominance during the early stages of the competition, qualifying behind Feyenoord in a highly competitive Group G. However, things would soon start to turn.
Los Hispalenses only failed to win one of their subsequent eight knockout round ties, a hard-earned 2-2 draw with familiar foes Zenit Saint Petersburg on Russian soil. Having agonisingly missed out on Champions League qualification four days before the final, Sevilla arrived in Warsaw with a chance of redemption. Thanks to a welcome rule change, the Europa League champions would automatically assume a place in UEFA’s top-tier competition the following season. It was perhaps fitting that Sevilla were the first team to benefit from this development, after beating Ukrainian underdogs Dnipro at the Stadion Narodowy.
2015/16 – Tough start, familiar ending
Sevilla could hardly have been handed a more difficult draw as they returned to the Champions League following a five-season hiatus, facing rising giants Manchester City, two-time winners Juventus, and strong fourth-seeds Borussia Mönchengladbach in a proverbial group of death.
Finishing third and therefore dropping into the Europa League was perhaps the best realistic outcome, particularly given their previous performance in this competition. Less than two years on from his heroic exploits in Bavaria, Kevin Gameiro once again netted a crucial spot-kick as Sevilla navigated past fellow La Liga outfit Athletic Bilbao to reach the semi-finals. After delivering a 5-3 aggregate win over Shakhtar Donetsk, the Andalusians wrapped up a remarkable third consecutive Europa League success by dispatching Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool in the showpiece.
2019/20 – A challenging route to silverware
After winning five of their six group stage fixtures and ousting CFR Cluj and Roma across the opening two knockout rounds, Sevilla would have to wait until the summer to meet quarter-final opponents Wolves.
A global pandemic may have caused major disruption to the Europa League schedule, but Sevilla’s focus on acquiring a trophy they regularly enjoy custody over remained consistent. Having already beaten a Premier League side in the previous round, Julen Lopetegui led his team to victory in their semi-final clash with Manchester United in another single-leg contest.
A sixth Europa League crown was secured at the conclusion of a thrilling final, which saw Luuk de Jong fire two trademark headers past Inter Milan’s Samir Handanović.
2022/23 – The magnificent seven
The latest chapter in Sevilla’s incredible Europa League story is perhaps the most exhilarating, partially due to a dramatic showdown with fellow finalists Roma.
After beating the likes of PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, and Juventus en route to the showpiece, the Spaniards travelled to the Hungarian capital for what would prove to be a memorable contest against the Serie A heavyweights. An ill-tempered 120 minutes of action couldn’t separate the two sides, resulting in a nerve-shredding penalty shootout.
It’s safe to say that Anthony Taylor will never feature on José Mourinho’s Christmas card list, after the English referee ruled that Gonzalo Montiel’s decisive spot-kick should be retaken as Rui Patrício had drifted forward from his line. Just like he did in Qatar less than six months earlier, the Argentinian found the back of the net to ensure his team earned a seminal triumph.
Europa League records
To provide some further perspective on the scale of their achievement, Sevilla have four additional Europa League trophies than their nearest rivals. There are five three-time winners, with Tottenham Hotspur, Atlético Madrid, Liverpool, Inter Milan, and Juventus all falling into this category.
Benfica and Marseille have finished as runners-up on three occasions, more than any other participants. Incidentally, neither of these teams have managed to secure a Europa League crown, but both are past winners of the Champions League.
Only representatives from 11 different countries have won this competition, although France, Scotland, Austria, Hungary, and Yugoslavia can lay claim to providing finalists. Spain is by far the most successful nation, with Sevilla contributing seven of La Liga’s 14 Europa League triumphs. If Aston Villa can put Freiburg to the sword at the Tüpraş Stadium, England will move clear of Italy as the competition’s second-most decorated member association.
Multiple Europa League Champions
Sevilla: 7
Tottenham Hotspur: 3
Atlético Madrid: 3
Liverpool: 3
Inter Milan: 3
Juventus: 3
Borussia Mönchengladbach: 2
Feyenoord: 2
Eintracht Frankfurt: 2
IFK Göteborg: 2
Real Madrid: 2
Parma: 2
Porto: 2
Chelsea: 2
Top five most successful nations
Spain: 14 – Sevilla (7), Atlético Madrid (3), Real Madrid (2), Villarreal (1), Valencia (1)
England: 10 – Tottenham Hotspur (3), Liverpool (3), Chelsea (2), Manchester United (1), Ipswich Town (1)
Italy: 10 – Inter Milan (3), Juventus (3), Parma (2), Atalanta (1), Napoli (1)
Germany (includes West Germany): 7 – Borussia Mönchengladbach (2), Eintracht Frankfurt (2), Schalke (1), Bayern Munich
(1), Bayer Leverkusen (1)
Netherlands: 4 – Feyenoord (2), Ajax (1), PSV Eindhoven (1)
Top scorers and award recipients
No player has scored more times in the Europa League than Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who struck his 34th goal during Marseille’s quarter-final defeat to Benfica in April 2024. The Gabonese marksman has also scored for Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, and Barcelona in this competition, but failed to find the net on European duty while representing Lille.
Henrik Larsson is the Europa League/UEFA Cup’s second-top scorer, having registered 31 goals in just 45 appearances. The vast majority of these strikes came during Celtic’s journey to the 2003 final in Seville, where he also bagged a double against Porto as the Hoops narrowly missed out on a second continental crown.
Since the 2016/17 campaign, an award for the Europa League ‘Player of the Season’ has been issued each year. Coaching personnel from all clubs that participate in the competition’s initial stage (previously the group, now the ‘league’ phase), alongside one journalist representative from each of UEFA’s 55 member associations, decide the winner. Five years after this award was introduced, an equivalent accolade for the competition’s young players was distributed by UEFA’s Technical Observer Panel.
Only two players who were not currently members of a Europa League-winning squad have received the Player of the Season gong. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was rewarded for concluding the 2023/24 campaign as top scorer with 10 goals in 13 outings, despite Marseille’s elimination at the semi-final stage. Romelu Lukaku was voted the competition’s best player a few years earlier, even though his unfortunate own goal contributed to Inter Milan succumbing to Sevilla in the 2020 showpiece.
Florian Wirtz claimed back-to-back Europa League Young Player of the Season awards after delivering a series of dazzling displays for Bayer Leverkusen throughout both the 2022/23 and 2023/24 campaigns. It’s worth noting that the Germans didn’t win the competition on either of these occasions.
Europa League Player of the Season recipients
2016/17: Paul Pogba (Manchester United)
2017/18: Antoine Griezmann (Atlético Madrid)
2018/19: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
2019/20: Romelu Lukaku (Inter Milan)
2020/21: Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)
2021/22: Filip Kostić (Eintracht Frankfurt)
2022/23: Jesús Navas (Sevilla)
2023/24: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Marseille)
2024/25: Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur)
Young Europa League Player of the Season recipients
2021/22: Ansgar Knauff (Eintracht Frankfurt)
2022/23: Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)
2023/24: Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)
2024/25: Rayan Cherki (Lyon)
Past winners
Find a complete list of UEFA Cup/Europa League winners below:
2025: Tottenham Hotspur (England)
2024: Atalanta (Italy)
2023: Sevilla (Spain)
2022: Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany)
2021: Villarreal (Spain)
2020: Sevilla (Spain)
2019: Chelsea (England)
2018: Atlético Madrid (Spain)
2017: Manchester United (England)
2016: Sevilla (Spain)
2015: Sevilla (Spain)
2014: Sevilla (Spain)
2013: Chelsea (England)
2012: Atlético Madrid (Spain)
2011: Porto (Portugal)
2010: Atlético Madrid (Spain)
2009: Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
2008: Zenit Saint Petersburg (Russia)
2007: Sevilla (Spain)
2006: Sevilla (Spain)
2005: CSKA Moscow (Russia)
2004: Valencia (Spain)
2003: Porto (Portugal)
2002: Feyenoord (Netherlands)
2001: Liverpool (England)
2000: Galatasaray (Turkey)
1999: Parma (Italy)
1998: Inter Milan (Italy)
1997: Schalke (Germany)
1996: Bayern Munich (Germany)
1995: Parma (Italy)
1994: Inter Milan (Italy)
1993: Juventus (Italy)
1992: Ajax (Netherlands)
1991: Inter Milan (Italy)
1990: Juventus (Italy)
1989: Napoli (Italy)
1988: Bayer Leverkusen (Germany)
1987: IFK Göteborg (Sweden)
1986: Real Madrid (Spain)
1985: Real Madrid (Spain)
1984: Tottenham Hotspur (England)
1983: Anderlecht (Belgium)
1982: IFK Göteborg (Sweden)
1981: Ipswich Town (England)
1980: Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany)
1979: Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany)
1978: PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
1977: Juventus (Italy)
1976: Liverpool (England)
1975: Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany)
1974: Feyenoord (Netherlands)
1973: Liverpool (England)
1972: Tottenham Hotspur (England)