One of the most exciting events in European football (soccer, in the United States) is back: the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League kicked off on September 24, 2025.
Want to get your European soccer fix, but aren’t sure where or how to watch the Europa League this year? We’ve got your back: this guide to the 2025-26 Europa League season will give you everything you need to know to tune it, including the full schedule of matchdays and fixtures, which teams made the cut and where to watch in the U.S.
And, you can watch every fake, save and goal right on DIRECTV! Sign up today.
How to Watch the 2025-26 Europa League in the United States
The 2025-26 UEFA Europa League will be broadcast exclusively by CBS Sports and streamed on Paramount+ in the United States. Some matches will also be broadcast in Spanish on UniMás and TUDN.
Find your local CBS affiliate station here.
What is the Europa League?
The UEFA Europa League is one of the top annual club competitions in the Union of European Football Association’s (UEFA). Only the UFEA Champions League is considered more prestigious.
The Europa League was previously known as the UEFA Cup.
Europa League Format & Qualification Methods
Currently, the Europa League consists of a 36-team format with a league phase and a knockout phase.
There are two main ways to qualify for the Europa League: the Main Path and the Champion’s Path.
To qualify under the Main Path, teams must show success in or win cups in their domestic leagues. Teams who are eliminated from the Champion’s League qualifying may also qualify for the Europa League through the Champion’s Path.
These teams play each other in the Playoff Round, with the 12 winners advancing to the League Phase, and the losers are placed in the Conference League.
The League Phase is played out over a series of matchdays from September until January, when the Knockout Phase begins. Teams play against eight different teams, half at home and half away.
In the Knockout Phase, the ninth through 24th ranked teams play each other in the Knockout Phase Playoffs for entry into the Round of 16. Then, the top 16 teams play each other in the Round of 16, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals.
The top two teams meet in the Europa League Final, with the winner getting the UEFA Europa League trophy and automatically qualifying for the next Champion’s League.
Full Europa League Schedule & Fixtures
Here’s the full schedule of the league and knockout phases of the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League season. We’ve included the matchups where they are available.
League Phase
- Matchdays:
- Matchday 1: Sept. 24–25, 2025
- FC Midtjylland vs. Sturm Graz (12:45 p.m. ET)
- POAK Salonika vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv (12:45 p.m. ET)
- Braga vs. Feyenoord (3 p.m. ET)
- Crvena Zvezda vs. Celtic (3 p.m. ET)
- Dinamo Zagreb vs. Fenerbahce (3 p.m. ET)
- Malmo FF vs. Ludogorets (3 p.m. ET)
- Nice vs. Roma (3 p.m. ET)
- Real Betis vs. Nottingham Forest (3 p.m. ET)
- SC Freiburg vs. Basel (3 p.m. ET)
- Matchday 2: Oct. 2, 2025
- Go Ahead Eagles vs. FCSB (12:45 p.m. ET)
- Lille vs. Brann (12:45 p.m. ET)
- Aston Villa vs. Bologna (3 p.m. ET)
- BSC Young Boys vs. Panathinaikos (3 p.m. ET)
- FC Utrecht vs. Lyon (3 p.m. ET)
- Ferencvaros vs. FC Viktoria Plzen (3 p.m. ET)
- Rangers vs. Genk (3 p.m. ET)
- Red Bull Salzburg vs. FC Porto (3 p.m. ET)
- Stuttgart vs. Celta Vigo (3 p.m. ET)
- Matchday 3: Oct. 23, 2025
- Matchday 4: Nov. 6, 2025
- Matchday 5: Nov. 27, 2025
- Matchday 6: Dec. 11, 2025
- Matchday 7: Jan. 22, 2026
- Matchday 8: Jan. 29, 2026
Knockout Phase
- Knockout Round Playoffs
Draw: Jan. 30, 2026
Matches: Feb. 19 & Feb. 26, 2026 - Round of 16
Draw: Feb. 27, 2026
Matches: Mar. 12 & Mar. 19, 2026 - Quarterfinals
Matches: Apr. 9 & Apr. 16, 2026 - Semifinals
Matches: Apr. 30 & May 7, 2026 - Final
Date: May 20, 2026
Venue: Beşiktaş Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey
Teams in the League Phase
Here are the teams that have qualified for the League Phase:
Austria: Salzburg, Sturm Graz
Belgium: Genk
Bulgaria: Ludogorets
Croatia: GNK Dinamo
Czechia: Viktoria Plzeň
Denmark: Midtjylland
England: Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest
France: Lille, Lyon, Nice
Germany: Freiburg, Stuttgart
Greece: Panathinaikos, PAOK
Hungary: Ferencváros
Israel: Maccabi Tel-Aviv
Italy: Bologna, Roma
Netherlands: Feyenoord, Go Ahead Eagles, Utrecht
Norway: Brann
Portugal: Braga, Porto
Romania: FCSB
Scotland: Celtic, Rangers
Serbia: Crvena Zvezda
Spain: Celta, Real Betis
Sweden: Malmö
Switzerland: Basel, Young Boys
Türkiye: Fenerbahçe
Who Won the 2024-25 Europa League?
England’s Tottenham Hotspur beat fellow Premier League team Manchester United 1-0 to the win the 2024-25 Europa League.
Watch Soccer on DIRECTV
Don’t miss a single kick, pass or save of the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League! Sign up for DIRECTV and start watching today.
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Frequently Asked Questions
When does the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League start?
The 2025-26 Europa League started on Sept. 24, 2025.
How long is the Europa League season?
The entire Europa League season, including the Knockout Phase, runs from September until May of the next year.
Who won the 2024-25 Europa League?
Tottenham Hotspur won the 2024-25 Europa League.
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