Europa League Preview 26/27: Who's Coming to Frankfurt?

The 2026–27 Europa League preview takes a look at Europe’s second-most important club competition. Thirty-six teams will kick off the group stage, which alone will feature 144 matches spread across eight matchdays, with 18 matches on each day. The first matchday will take place on September 16 and 17, 2026, and the group stage will end on January 28, 2027. This will be followed by the playoffs, round of 16, quarterfinals, and semifinals.

This season holds special appeal for German fans, as the final will take place on May 26, 2027, in Frankfurt am Main. After two seasons under the new format, this is the third edition to feature a league phase. This preview looks at how the draw went, which opponents the two Bundesliga teams will face, who has a shot at the title, and where the games can be watched.

The draw took place on Friday, August 28, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. UEFA held the Europa League draw one day after the Champions League draw and immediately before the Conference League draw.

Here's how the process works:

• Four pots, nine teams: The seeding is based on the UEFA club coefficient. Bayer Leverkusen landed in Pot 1, while TSG Hoffenheim ended up in Pot 4.
• Eight opponents per club: two from each pot, plus four home games and four away games. The pairings were determined by a computer program.
• Two restrictions: Clubs from the same country cannot face each other during the group stage. A team from any given country can be drawn against a maximum of two opponents.
• A single standings table: The top eight advance directly to the Round of 16; teams ranked 9th through 24th play in the playoffs; for teams ranked 25th and below, the season ends in January.

There’s also a first: FC Ararat-Armenia is the first Armenian club to advance to the league phase. Incidentally, there will be two more draws: on January 29, 2027, for the playoffs, and on February 26, 2027, for the tournament bracket starting with the round of 16.

Two Bundesliga teams are involved, and their challenges are more similar than chance would suggest.

• Bayer Leverkusen: At home, they’ll face Olympique Marseille, RB Salzburg, NK Celje, and Beşiktaş Istanbul; on the road, they’ll play Olympique Lyon, Dinamo Zagreb, Lech Poznań, and OFI Crete. For the Werkself, who reached the final two years ago, this is a manageable group stage. The two French opponents will be the toughest tests.
• TSG Hoffenheim: Home games against Olympique Lyon, Ferencváros Budapest, Sturm Graz, and Beşiktaş; away games at Olympiacos Piraeus, RSC Anderlecht, Crystal Palace, and OFI Crete. Two of these matches have special significance. Against Sturm Graz, coach Christian Ilzer will face his former club, and Crystal Palace is the reigning Conference League champion.

Both clubs will face Lyon, Beşiktaş, and OFI Crete. A German matchup is out of the question during the group stage. It will only be possible starting in the playoffs.

There is no defending champion in this field. Aston Villa won the competition last season and is therefore playing in the Champions League this season.

The standings come before the title anyway. Whoever finishes in the top eight advances directly to the round of 16 and avoids two additional knockout games in February. For Leverkusen, that’s a realistic goal; Hoffenheim would likely be satisfied with a spot in the playoff ranks.

When it comes to predicting the champion, the focus is on the clubs in Pot 1:

• Juventus Turin and AC Milan: two Italian powerhouses that view the competition as a stepping stone back to the Champions League.
• Benfica Lisbon: One of the most experienced European Cup participants in the field.
• Olympique Marseille and Olympique Lyon: France has two title contenders.
• Bayer Leverkusen: As the 2024 finalist, the Werkself knows from recent history how to go far in this competition.

Important to know: When making your own Europa League predictions, it’s not enough to just look at your own team. Because all 36 clubs are in the same standings, results between teams you don’t even play against also matter. In the end, the difference between eighth and ninth place is often just goal differential.

Bet on the Europa League games now

Weighing 15 kilograms, the Europa League trophy is the heaviest trophy in UEFA's entire competition portfolio.

From a sporting perspective, the title carries even more weight. The winner automatically qualifies for the group stage of the 2027–28 Champions League and will face the Champions League winner in the UEFA Super Cup in August 2027. Aston Villa recently followed exactly this path.

The venue for the final also has a rich history. The stadium in Frankfurt opened in 1925, has been renovated several times, and most recently hosted five matches during the 2024 European Championship. It also hosted matches during the 2006 World Cup and the 2005 Confederations Cup. On May 26, 2027, it will host its first Europa League final.

In Germany, the rights are held by the RTL Group; the main platform is RTL+, which carries most of the games and has its own conference. On each match day, one additional game is broadcast for free on RTL or Nitro, usually featuring a German team.

So if you want to watch the Europa League, you don't need DAZN or Amazon. That will change soon, though: Starting with the 2027–28 season, the rights will go to DAZN, making the current season the last one to be broadcast on free-to-air TV.