Betis and Villarreal watch the draw with anticipation, hoping luck tips the scales in Monaco.
With the Europa League group stage set, fate will shape key moments this Friday in Monaco. Manuel Pellegrini’s Real Betis and Quique Setién’s Villarreal have already clinched their places in the knockout rounds without extra qualifiers, and they now wait to learn their opponents in the second-tier European competition.
The Europa League draw is scheduled for Friday, September 1, starting at 1pm local time, inside the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.
How the Europa League draw works
According to UEFA, 32 teams qualified for the Europa League group stage and will be divided into eight groups of four. The process is not a straight random draw; rather, teams are placed into pots based on recent European performance and coefficients. Unlike the Champions League, the emphasis in the Europa League is on term-by-term results rather than prestige, so every club is ranked by track record rather than by last season’s status alone.
Two additional rules shape the draw. Teams from the same federation cannot face each other, and UEFA reserves the right to limit certain pairings for political reasons. It is also noted that teams from Russia and Belarus remain excluded due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, per UEFA’s official communications.
The Europa League drums
Villarreal, the Europa League champions in the 2020-2021 campaign, holds enough ranking points to be in Pot 1. Real Betis, sitting in Pot 2, could meet heavyweight clubs such as Roma, Liverpool, Atalanta, or Ajax in the group stage.
DRUM 1:
- West Ham United (England)
- Liverpool (England)
- Roma (Italy)
- Ajax (Netherlands)
- Villarreal (Spain)
- Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany)
- Atalanta (Italy)
- Rangers (Scotland)
DRUM 2:
- Sporting CP (Portugal)
- Slavia Prague (Czech Republic)
- Rennes (France)
- Olympiakos (Greece)
- Real Betis (Spain)
- Marseille (France)
- Qarabag (Azerbaijan)
- LSK (Austria)
DRUM 3:
- Brighton & Hove Albion (England)
- Molde (Norway)
- Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova)
- Saint-Gilloise (Belgium)
- Freiburg (Germany)
- Sparta Prague (Czech Republic)
- Maccabi Haifa (Israel)
- Sturm Graz (Austria)
DRUM 4:
- TSC Backa Topola (Serbia)
- Young Boys (Switzerland)
- Panathinaikos (Greece)
- Raków Częstochowa (Poland)
- Aris (Cyprus)
- Toulouse (France)
- AEK Athens (Greece)
- Hammarby (Sweden)
How to watch the Europa League draw on TV?
Fans can follow the live coverage of the Europa League draw on television through the Champions League channel on M+
Competition dates
- Matchday 1: September 21
- Matchday 2: October 5
- Matchday 3: October 26
- Matchday 4: November 9
- Matchday 5: November 30
- Matchday 6: December 14
- Preliminary round draw: December 18
- First leg of the preliminary round: February 15
- Return from the preliminary round: February 22
- Round of 16 draw: February 23
- Round of 16 first leg: March 7
- Round of 16 second leg: March 14
- Draw for quarter-finals, semi-finals and final: March 15
- First leg of the quarter-finals: April 11
- Return of the quarter-finals: April 18
- First leg of the semi-finals: May 2
- Return of the semi-finals: May 9
- Final date: May 22
Note: All dates reflect typical scheduling windows and may be adjusted by UEFA; audiences should verify local broadcast plans for Canada and the United States. Sources indicate goals and matchups are confirmed by official UEFA communications and live event coverage (Goal).