The 2026 UEFA Europa League final will feature Aston Villa against Freiburg. Aston Villa advanced by defeating Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate, while Freiburg reached their first European final by overcoming Braga 4-3.
When and where is Europa League final 2026? Date, time, more to know about Aston Villa vs. Freiburg originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The UEFA Europa League final is now set following this week's semifinal second legs.
Aston Villa produced an outstanding performance to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit to Nottingham Forest, thrashing their Premier League rivals 4-0 at Villa Park to progress 4-1 on aggregate.
On the other side of the bracket, Bundesliga side Freiburg overcame Portuguese outfit Braga 4-3 across the two legs to reach a first European final in their history.
Here are the key details on the fixture.
MORE:Mapping Villa and Freiburg's progress through Europa League knockouts
This year's final will take place at Tupras Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey.
The venue, which is the home of 16-time Turkish champions Besiktas, has a capacity of just under 44,000 spectators.
The exact date of the Europa League final 2026 has not been specified yet.
The location for the Europa League final 2026 has not been announced yet.
Aston Villa reached the final by defeating Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate in the semifinals.
The teams competing in the Europa League final 2026 are Aston Villa and Freiburg.
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The 2026 Europa League final will be played on Wednesday, May 20. Kickoff is at 11 p.m. local time, which translates as follows in some major territories:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| USA/Canada | Wed, May 20 | 3:00 p.m. ET |
| USA/Canada | Wed, May 20 | 12:00 p.m. PT |
| UK | Wed, May 20 | 8:00 p.m. |
| Australia | Thu, May 21 | 5:00 a.m. |
| India | Thu, May 21 | 12:30 a.m. |
The very first UEFA Cup was won by Tottenham Hotspur against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Until 1998, the final was a two-legged contest, so each finalist played one game at home.
Turkey will be the 14th country to host the final.
| Year | Stadium (Country) | Winners | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Molineux (England) White Hart Lane (England) | Tottenham | Wolves |
| 1973 | Anfield (England) Bokelbergstadion (West Germany) | Liverpool | Borussia Monchengladbach |
| 1974 | White Hart Lane (England) De Kuip (Netherlands) | Feyenoord | Tottenham |
| 1975 | Rheinstadion (West Germany) Diekman Stadion (Netherlands) | Borussia Monchengladbach | Twente |
| 1976 | Anfield (Liverpool) Olympiastadion (Belgium) | Liverpool | Club Brugge |
| 1977 | Stadio Comunale (Italy) San Mames (Spain) | Juventus | Athletic Club |
| 1978 | Stade Armand Cesari (France) Philips Stadion (Netherlands) | PSV | Bastia |
| 1979 | Stadio Crvena Zvezda (Yugoslavia) Rheinstadion (West Germany) | Borussia Monchengladbach | Red Star Belgrade |
| 1980 | Rheinstadion (West Germany) Waldstadion (West Germany) | Eintracht Frankfurt | Borussia Monchengladbach |
| 1981 | Portman Road (England) Olympisch Stadion (Netherlands) | Ipswich Town | AZ |
| 1982 | Nya Ullevi (Sweden) Volksparkstadion (West Germany) | IFK Goteborg | Hamburg |
| 1983 | Heysel Stadium (Belgium) Estadio da Luz (Portugal) | Anderlecht | Benfica |
| 1984 | Constant Vanden Stock (Belgium) White Hart Lane (England) | Tottenham | Anderlecht |
| 1985 | Sostoi Stadion (Hungary) Santiago Bernabeu (Spain) | Real Madrid | Videoton |
| 1986 | Santiago Bernabeu (Spain) Olympiastadion (West Germany) | Real Madrid | Koln |
| 1987 | Nya Ullevi (Sweden) Tannadice Park (Scotland) | IFK Goteborg | Dundee United |
| 1988 | Estadi de Sarria (Spain) Ulrich Haberland Stadion (West Germany) | Bayer Leverkusen | Espanyol |
| 1989 | Stadio San Paolo (Italy) Neckarstadion (West Germany) | Napoli | Stuttgart |
| 1990 | Stadio Comunale (Italy) Stadio Partenio (Italy) | Juventus | Fiorentina |
| 1991 | San Siro (Italy) Stadio Olimpico (Italy) | Inter Milan | Roma |
| 1992 | Stadio delle Alpi (Italy) Olympisch Stadion (Netherlands) | Ajax | Torino |
| 1993 | Westfalenstadion (Germany) Stadio delle Alpi (Italy) | Juventus | Borussia Dortmund |
| 1994 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion (Austria) San Siro (Italy) | Inter Milan | Austria Salzburg |
| 1995 | Stadio Ennio Tardini (Italy) San Siro (Italy) | Parma | Juventus |
| 1996 | Olympiastadion (Germany) Parc Lescure (France) | Bayern Munich | Bordeaux |
| 1997 | Parkstadion (Germany) San Siro (Italy) | Schalke | Inter Milan |
| 1998 | Parc des Princes (France) | Inter Milan | Lazio |
| 1999 | Luzhniki Stadium (Russia) | Parma | Marseille |
| 2000 | Parken Stadium (Denmark) | Galatasaray | Arsenal |
| 2001 | Westfalenstadion (Germany) | Liverpool | Alaves |
| 2002 | De Kuip (Netherlands) | Feyenoord | Borussia Dortmund |
| 2003 | Estadio Olimpico de Sevilla (Spain) | Porto | Celtic |
| 2004 | Nya Ullevi (Sweden) | Valencia | Marseille |
| 2005 | Estadio Jose Alvalade (Portugal) | CSKA Moscow | Sporting CP |
| 2006 | PSV Stadion (Netherlands) | Sevilla | Middlesbrough |
| 2007 | Hampden Park (Scotland) | Sevilla | Espanyol |
| 2008 | City of Manchester Stadium (England) | Zenit | Rangers |
| 2009 | Şukru Saracoglu Stadium (Turkey) | Shakhtar Donetsk | Werder Bremen |
| 2010 | Volkparkstadion (Germany) | Atletico Madrid | Fulham |
| 2011 | Lansdowne Road (Republic of Ireland) | Porto | Braga |
| 2012 | Arena Nationala (Romania) | Atletico Madrid | Athletic Club |
| 2013 | Amsterdam Arena (Netherlands) | Chelsea | Benfica |
| 2014 | Juventus Stadium (Italy) | Sevilla | Benfica |
| 2015 | National Stadium (Poland) | Sevilla | Dnipro |
| 2016 | St. Jakob-Park (Switzerland) | Sevilla | Liverpool |
| 2017 | Friends Arena (Sweden) | Manchester United | Ajax |
| 2018 | Parc Olympique Lyonnais (France) | Atletico Madrid | Marseille |
| 2019 | Olympic Stadium (Azerbaijan) | Chelsea | Arsenal |
| 2020 | Stadion Koln (Germany) | Sevilla | Inter Milan |
| 2021 | Stadion Gdansk (Poland) | Villarreal | Manchester United |
| 2022 | Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan (Spain) | Eintracht Frankfurt | Rangers |
| 2023 | Puskas Arena (Hungary) | Sevilla | Roma |
| 2024 | Dublin Arena (Republic of Ireland) | Atalanta | Bayer Leverkusen |
| 2025 | San Mames (Spain) | Tottenham | Manchester United |
| 2026 | Besiktas Stadium (Turkey) | TBD Aston Villa vs. Freiburg | |
| 2027 | Waldstadion (Germany) | TBD |
The Europa League has been dominated by Spanish side Sevilla this century as they've won the trophy on seven occasions and have never lost a final.
Their most recent triumph came on penalties in the 2023 final, when they faced Jose Mourinho's Roma.
After Sevilla, four teams have won the competition on three occasions: Inter Milan, Liverpool, Juventus and Atletico Madrid.
In the future, clubs like those at the top of this table may not be in contention for the Europa League title as UEFA has done away with the ability of Champions League sides to drop down into the competition.
| Club | Winners | Years won |
|---|---|---|
| Sevilla | 7 | 2006, 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020, 2023 |
| Inter Milan | 3 | 1991, 1994, 1998 |
| Liverpool | 3 | 1973, 1976, 2001 |
| Juventus | 3 | 1977, 1990, 1993 |
| Atletico Madrid | 3 | 2010, 2012, 2018 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 3 | 1972, 1984, 2025 |
| Borussia Monchengladbach | 2 | 1975, 1979 |
| Feyenoord | 2 | 1974, 2002 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 2 | 1980, 2022 |
| IFK Gothenburg | 2 | 1982, 1987 |
| Real Madrid | 2 | 1985, 1986 |
| Parma | 2 | 1995, 1999 |
| Porto | 2 | 2003, 2011 |
| Chelsea | 2 | 2013, 2019 |
| Anderlecht | 1 | 1983 |
| Ajax | 1 | 1992 |
| Manchester United | 1 | 2017 |
| PSV Eindhoven | 1 | 1978 |
| Ipswich Town | 1 | 1981 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 1 | 1988 |
| Napoli | 1 | 1989 |
| Bayern Munich | 1 | 1996 |
| Schalke 04 | 1 | 1997 |
| Galatasaray | 1 | 2000 |
| Valencia | 1 | 2004 |
| CSKA Moscow | 1 | 2005 |
| Zenit Saint Petersburg | 1 | 2008 |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 1 | 2009 |
| Villarreal | 1 | 2021 |
| Atalanta | 1 | 2024 |