When is the Europa League draw for the last 16? Date, start time and qualified teams | OneFootball

The draw for the knockout rounds of the Europa League will be completed this week as teams including Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest learn their potential route to May’s final in Istanbul.

Tonight’s midweek play-off matches will send eight teams though to the last 16 to join the clubs who finished in the top eight of the league phase, with the likes of Porto, Roma and Lyon joined by Premier League high-flyers Villa.

The outline of the draw has already been made, with teams grouped into small four-way pools of possible opponents based on their league placings.

The Villans, who finished second in the league phase, could face French side Lille, while Forest will face either Danish side Midtjylland or La Liga club Real Betis.

When is the draw?

The Europa League last-16 draw will take place in Nyon at 12pm GMT (1pm local time) on Friday 27 February.

The draw will be streamed live on Uefa’s website, YouTube channel and Europa League app.

Which teams have qualified for the last-16?

The top eight sides in this season’s Europa League league phase await in the knockout rounds. They are:

Who has advanced via the play-offs?

The teams who finished between ninth and 24th in the league phase went into the play-offs. Here are the results after both legs:

The teams have been grouped into seeded couplets according to how they finished in the league phase, so, for example, Lyon (who finished top) or Villa (who finished second) will play the winners of either Lille or Celta Vigo.

Teams from the same national league can play each other in the knockout rounds.

Lyon and Aston Villa will be drawn against:

FC Midtjylland and Real Betis will be drawn against:

Porto and Braga will be drawn against:

Freiburg and AS Roma will be drawn against:

What are the match dates?

The last-16 ties will take place in mid-March. Here are the remaining round dates:

Round of 16: 10/11 & 17/18 March 2026

Quarter-finals: 8/9 & 15/16 April 2026

Semi-finals: 29/30 April & 6/7 May 2026

Final: 19/20 May 2026 (Istanbul)

The bookies are expecting Aston Villa to win this season’s Europa League, with the Premier League side favourites to lift the trophy with all UK betting sites.

Aston Villa – 11/4

Roma – 7/1

Porto – 8/1

Lyon – 9/1

Real Betis – 10/1

Nottingham Forest – 10/1