From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
2026 UEFA Europa League final
| Column 1 |
|---|
| Beşiktaş Stadium in Istanbul will host the final. |
| 2025–26 UEFA Europa League |
| SC Freiburg |
| Aston Villa |
| 20 May 2026 (2026-05-20) |
| Beşiktaş Stadium, Istanbul |
The 2026 UEFA Europa League final will be the final match of the 2025–26 UEFA Europa League, the 55th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 17th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. It will be played at Beşiktaş Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, on 20 May 2026 between German club SC Freiburg and English club Aston Villa.
The winners will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League in the 2026 UEFA Super Cup. The winners will also qualify to enter the league phase of the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League, unless they have already qualified for the Champions League through their league performance (in which case the access list will be rebalanced).
Freiburg reached their first ever European final. They are aiming for a first major title.
Aston Villa reached their first UEFA Cup/Europa League final and a third European final, having won the 1982 European Cup final and 1982 European Super Cup. They are seeking a first major trophy since winning the League Cup in 1996.
On 17 May 2023, UEFA opened the bidding process for the final, which was held in parallel with that of the 2027 final. Interested bidders could bid for either one or both of the finals. Additionally, bidding associations could only be appointed one UEFA final in a given year. The proposed venues had to include natural grass and be ranked as a UEFA category four stadium, with a gross capacity of 40,000 to 60,000 preferred. The bidding timeline was as follows:
- 17 May 2023: Applications formally invited
- 17 July 2023: Closing date for registering intention to bid
- 26 July 2023: Bid requirements made available to bidders
- 15 November 2023: Submission of preliminary bid dossier
- 21 February 2024: Submission of final bid dossier
- 22 May 2024: Appointment of host
UEFA announced on 18 July 2023 that four associations had expressed interest in hosting the 2026 and 2027 finals during the first bidding process.
| Association | Stadium | City | Capacity | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Waldstadion | Frankfurt | 53,800 | Association also bid for 2026 or 2027 Conference League and 2026 or 2027 Women's Champions League finals (with different venues)Merkur Spiel-Arena in Düsseldorf, Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen, Red Bull Arena in Leipzig or MHPArena in Stuttgart were also included as possible venues prior to official bid submissionStadium appointed as host of 2027 Europa League final; association appointed as host of 2026 Conference League final |
| Romania | Arena Națională | Bucharest | 55,634 | |
| Scotland | Hampden Park | Glasgow | 51,866 | Stadium also bid for 2026 or 2027 Conference League and 2026 or 2027 Women's Champions League finals |
| Turkey | Beşiktaş Stadium | Istanbul | 42,684 | Stadium also bid for 2026 or 2027 Conference League finalsRams Park or Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium (both also in Istanbul) were also included as possible venues prior to official bid submission |
Beşiktaş Stadium was selected as the venue by the UEFA Executive Committee during their meeting in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, on 22 May 2024.
Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).
| SC Freiburg | Round | Aston Villa | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | Result | League phase | Opponent | Result | ||||
| Basel | 2–1 (H) | Matchday 1 | Bologna | 1–0 (H) | ||||
| Bologna | 1–1 (A) | Matchday 2 | Feyenoord | 2–0 (A) | ||||
| Utrecht | 2–0 (H) | Matchday 3 | Go Ahead Eagles | 1–2 (A) | ||||
| Nice | 3–1 (A) | Matchday 4 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 2–0 (H) | ||||
| Viktoria Plzeň | 0–0 (A) | Matchday 5 | Young Boys | 2–1 (H) | ||||
| Red Bull Salzburg | 1–0 (H) | Matchday 6 | Basel | 2–1 (A) | ||||
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 1–0 (H) | Matchday 7 | Fenerbahçe | 1–0 (A) | ||||
| Lille | 0–1 (A) | Matchday 8 | Red Bull Salzburg | 3–2 (H) | ||||
| 7th placeAdvanced to round of 16 | Final position | 2nd placeAdvanced to round of 16 | ||||||
| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Knockout phase | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Genk | 5–2 | 0–1 (A) | 5–1 (H) | Round of 16 | Lille | 3–0 | 1–0 (A) | 2–0 (H) |
| Celta Vigo | 6–1 | 3–0 (H) | 3–1 (A) | Quarter-finals | Bologna | 7–1 | 3–1 (A) | 4–0 (H) |
| Braga | 4–3 | 1–2 (A) | 3–1 (H) | Semi-finals | Nottingham Forest | 4–1 | 0–1 (A) | 4–0 (H) |
The winner of semi-final 1 will be designated as the "home" team for administrative purposes.
| Column 1 | Column 2 |
|---|---|
| Match rules |
90 minutes 30 minutes of extra time if necessary
Penalty shoot-out if scores still level
Maximum of twelve named substitutes Maximum of five substitutions, with a sixth allowed in extra time Maximum of three substitution opportunities, with a fourth allowed in extra time |
-
2026 UEFA Champions League final
-
2026 UEFA Conference League final
-
2026 UEFA Women's Champions League final
-
2026 UEFA Women's Europa Cup final
-
2026 UEFA Super Cup
Ask Mako anything about 2026 UEFA Europa League final — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report