Arsenal and Manchester United are rated among the favourites to win the Europa League after securing their places via their final Premier League positions last season.
The Gunners are back in European competition after a season away and will be looking to end a run of near misses in this competition. Arsenal have reached at least the semi-final stage in three of their previous four appearances, losing the 2018-19 final to Chelsea in Azerbaijan.
United, meanwhile, last lifted the trophy in 2016-17 when a side managed by Jose Mourinho beat Ajax 2-0 in the final. Erik ten Hag was not the opposing manager on that occasion, but took his former club to the quarter-finals in 2020-21, a couple of years after overseeing their run to the Champions League semis.
Rangers came within a penalty shootout of winning last season’s final against Eintracht Frankfurt, but after sealing a return to the Champions League for the first time in 11 years, it is left to Hearts to fly the flag for Scottish clubs this campaign.
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The Jam Tarts will have to overturn a 2-1 first leg deficit in their play-off against FC Zurich to progress to the group stage, though.
League of Ireland side Shamrock Rovers face an even more daunting task after losing 4-0 to Ferencvaros in their first leg.
Which clubs have qualified?
- Manchester United (ENG)
- Arsenal (ENG)
- Lazio (ITA)
- Roma (ITA)
- Nantes (FRA)
- Monaco (FRA)
- Rennes (FRA)
- Real Sociedad (ESP)
- Real Betis (ESP)
- Union Berlin (GER)
- Freiburg (GER)
- Braga (POR)
- Feyenoord (NED)
- PSV Eindhoven (NED)
- Sturm Graz (AUT)
- Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL)
- FC Midtjylland (DEN)
- Red Star Belgrade (SRB)
- Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
- Qarabag (AZE)
- Trabzonspor (TUR)
- Bodø/Glimt (NOR)
Clubs to join from the Europa League play-off round:
- AEK Larnaca (CYP) or SC Dnipro-1 (UKR)
- Zalgiris Vilnius (LTU) or Ludogorets (BUL)
- Silkeborg (DEN) or HJK Helsinki (FIN)
- FC Sheriff (MOL) or Pyunik (ARM)
- Fenerbahce (TUR) or Austria Vienna (AUS)
- Omonia Nicosia (CYP) or Gent (BEL)
- Sivasspor (TUR) or Malmo (SWE)
- Hearts (SCO) or FC Zurich (SWI)
- Olympiacos (GRE) or Apollon Limassol (CYP)
- Shamrock Rovers (IRE) or Ferencvaros (HUN)
According to the bookies, other contenders to win the tournament include Mourinho’s Roma after their Europa Conference League triumph last season, Lazio – coached by Maurizio Sarri who won it with Chelsea back in 2019 – and La Liga duo Real Sociedad and Real Betis.
Here’s all you need to know ahead of the draw:
When will the draw take place?
The 2022-23 Europa League group stage draw will take place on Friday 26 August in Istanbul, Turkey.
It will be streamed live from 12pm on BT Sport in the UK, and in the past has been available to watch for free on YouTube.
You can also watch it live on Uefa’s website here.
How does the draw work?
Similarly to the Champions League, there will be eight groups of four teams drawn from four different pots.
Based on their Uefa coefficient ranking, the 32 clubs will be seeded in pots one to four. A club’s previous performances in Uefa competitions are used to determine their number of coefficient points. Manchester United have the highest coefficient ranking, followed by Roma.
Clubs from the same national association cannot be drawn against each other, meaning for instance that Arsenal cannot be included in the same group as Premier League rivals Manchester United.
When will the fixtures be played?
With the World Cup in Qatar looming, the Europa League group stage will be condensed into an eight-week period to ensure it is completed before the tournament kicks off.
Europa League schedule
The group stage will be completed before the World Cup begins on 20 November
- Matchday 1: 8 September
- Matchday 2: 15 September
- Matchday 3: 6 October
- Matchday 4: 13 October
- Matchday 5: 27 October
- Matchday 6: 3 November
It will begin in September and end in November, a couple of weeks before the World Cup gets underway. All matches will be played on Thursdays unless in exceptional circumstances.
Who are the favourites for the competition?
Frankfurt became the first club from outside of England or Spain to win the competition in a decade when they beat Rangers 5-4 on penalties in Seville in May.
Prior to the Bundesliga club’s achievement, the Europa League had been dominated by La Liga and Premier League sides. In the previous 10 tournaments, seven of the winners hailed from Spain with the other three coming from England.
That perhaps explains why Arsenal and Manchester United are regarded as the frontrunners with Real Betis and Real Sociedad also tipped to do well.
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Arsenal and United’s ambitions in Europe may depend on how well they perform domestically. Mikel Arteta’s side have made a blistering start in the Premier League and may view finishing in the top four as their best chance of sealing a long-awaited return to the Champions League.
Winning the Europa League also ensures a place in Europe’s top-tier competition the following year and United went down that route in 2017 by winning the tournament after finishing sixth in the Premier League.
Remarkably an Italian side hasn’t lifted the trophy since Parma in 1999, but both Roma and Lazio’s managers have pedigree in the Europa League which could boost their chances.
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