The 2025-26 Europa League begins this week, as Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa bid to keep the UEFA Cup in the Premier League after Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester United to the silverware last season.
MORE — List of all-time Europa League/UEFA Cup winners
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Unai Emery’s Villa qualified as the sixth-place team on the Premier League table last season, while Forest’s bid to win the Europa League is due to Crystal Palace’s demotion to the Conference League.
Forest have already fired two managers this season in Nuno Espirito Santo and 2024-25 UEL winner Ange Postecoglou. What is their path to the knockout phase? Who are on Villa’s fixture list? And when are the games and big dates for the entire season?
Read on for all you need to know about the 2025-26 Europa League.
When is the Europa League league phase and knockout phase? What dates are the Europa League games?
The Europa League league phase consists of eight matchdays from September 24 – January 29. The games are mostly on Wednesdays and Thursday.
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The Europa League knockout phase begins February 19 and goes through the final on May 20, 2026 at Besiktas Stadium in Istanbul, Turkiye.
When are the knockout phase draws and dates? When is the 2025-26 Europa League Final?
The knockout round playoff draw is January 30, with two-legged ties staged February 19 and 26.
The draws for the Round of 16 and paths to the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final will be held on February 27, 2026.
As for game dates:
Playoff round: February 19 and 26
Round of 16: March 12 and 19
Quarterfinals: April 9 and 16
Semifinals: April 30 and May 7
Final: May 20, 2026 at Besiktas Stadium in Istanbul, Turkiye
2025-26 UEFA Europa League: Next fixtures
Matchday 3
Thursday, October 23
12:45pm ET
RB Salzburg vs Ferencvaros
Braga vs Red Star Belgrade
Fenerbahce vs Stuttgart
Feyenoord vs Panathinaikos
Brann vs Rangers
Go Ahead Eagles vs Aston Villa
Genk vs Real Betis
FCSB vs Bologna
Lyon vs Basel
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3pm ET
Lyon vs Basel
Celta Vigo vs Nice
Lille vs PAOK
Malmo vs Dinamo Zagreb
Young Boys vs Ludogorets Razgrad
Freiburg vs Utrecht
Celtic vs Sturm Graz
Maccabi Tel-Aviv vs Midtjylland
Nottingham Forest vs Porto
AS Roma vs Viktoria Plzen
2025-26 UEFA Europa League league phase table
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Dinamo Zagreb — 2-0-0, +4 GD, 6 points
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Midtjylland — 2-0-0, +3 GD, 6 points
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Braga — 2-0-0, +3 GD, 6 points
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Aston Villa — 2-0-0, +3 GD, 6 points
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Lyon — 2-0-0, +3 GD, 6 points
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Lille — 2-0-0, +2 GD, 6 points
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Porto — 2-0-0, +2 GD, 6 points
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Viktoria Plzen — 1-1-0, +3 GD, 4 points
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Real Betis — 1-1-0, +2 GD, 4 points
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Freiburg — 1-1-0, +1 GD, 4 points
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Ferencvaros — 1-1-0, +1 GD, 4 points
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Panathinaikos — 1-0-1, +2 GD, 3 points
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Celta Vigo — 1-0-1, +1 GD, 3 points
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Basel — 1-0-1, +1 GD, 3 points
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AS Roma — 1-0-1, 0 GD, 3 points
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Go Ahead Eagles — 1-0-1, 0 GD, 3 points
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Brann — 1-0-1, 0 GD, 3 points
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Genk — 1-0-1, 0 GD, 3 points
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Young Boys — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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Fenerbahce — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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Ludogorets Razgrad — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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Sturm Graz — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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Stuttgart — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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FCSB — 1-0-1, -1 GD, 3 points
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Nottingham Forest — 0-1-1, -1 GD, 1 points
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Red Star Belgrade — 0-1-1, -1 GD, 1 points
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Bologna — 0-1-1, -1 GD, 1 points
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Celtic — 0-1-1, -2 GD, 1 points
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PAOK — 0-1-1, -2 GD, 1 points
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Maccabi Tel-Aviv — 0-1-1, -2 GD, 1 points
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Nice — 0-0-2, -2 GD, 0 points
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Rangers — 0-0-2, -2 GD, 0 points
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Utrecht — 0-0-2, -2 GD, 0 points
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Red Bull Salzburg — 0-0-2, -3 GD, 0 points
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Feyenoord — 0-0-2, -3 GD, 0 points
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Malmo — 0-0-2, -4 GD, 0 points
Premier League clubs’ 2025-26 UEFA Europa League fixtures
Aston Villa
League phase
September 25 vs Bologna — Won 1-0
October 2 at Feyenoord — Won 2-0
October 23 at Go Ahead Eagles
November 6 vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv
November 27 vs Young Boys
December 11 at Basel
January 22 at Fenerbahce
January 29 vs Red Bull Salzburg
Nottingham Forest
League phase
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September 24 at Real Betis — Drew 2-2
October 2 vs Midtjylland — Lost 3-2
October 23 vs Porto
November 6 at Sturm Graz
November 27 vs Malmo
December 11 at Utrecht
January 22 at Braga
January 29 vs Ferencvaros
2025-26 UEFA Europa League: Schedule, results
Matchday 1
Wednesday, September 24
Midtjylland 2-0 Sturm Graz
PAOK 0-0 Maccabi Tel-Aviv
Malmo 1-2 Ludogorets Razgrad
Braga 1-0 Feyenoord
Real Betis 2-2 Nottingham Forest
Freiburg 2-1 Basel
Dinamo Zagreb 3-1 Fenerbahce
Red Star Belgrade 1-1 Celtic
Nice 1-2 AS Roma
Thursday, September 25
Go Ahead Eagles 0-1 Steaua Bucuresti
Lille 2-1 Brann
Ferencvaros 1-1 Viktoria Plzen
Salzburg 0-1 Porto
Stuttgart 2-1 Celta Vigo
Utrecht 0-1 Lyon
Rangers 0-1 Genk
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
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Matchday 2
Thursday, October 2
Panathinaikos 1-2 Go Ahead Eagles
AS Roma 0-1 Lille
FCSB 0-2 Young Boys
Ludogorets Razgrad 0-2 Real Betis
Viktoria Plzen vs Malmo
Fenerbahce 2-1 Nice
Bologna 1-1 Freiburg
Brann 1-0 Utrecht
Celtic 0-2 Braga
Nottingham Forest 2-3 Midtjylland
Lyon 2-0 RB Salzburg
Genk 0-1 Ferencvaros
Maccabi Tel-Aviv 1-3 Dinamo Zagreb
Sturm Graz 2-1 Glasgow Rangers
Celta Vigo 3-1 PAOK
Porto 2-1 Red Star Belgrade
Feyenoord 0-2 Aston Villa
Basel 2-0 Stuttgart