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Starting from the 2009-2010 season, the UEFA Cup was renamed the UEFA Europa League. One of the oldest tournaments in European football, the UEFA Cup, underwent significant changes in 2009. According to a decision by the UEFA Executive Committee in November 2007, the UEFA Cup, which began in the 1971-1972 season, was officially renamed the UEFA Europa League starting from the 2009-2010 season. UEFA continued to enhance the stature and image of this second-largest club competition in European football.
Participating Teams: The participating teams include top teams from the domestic leagues of UEFA member associations and the champions of domestic cup competitions. The number of teams each country can send is determined by the ranking coefficient of their league in UEFA. Higher-ranked countries can send more teams to participate. Teams that fail in the second round of UEFA Champions League qualifying enter the third round of UEFA Europa League qualifying. The winners of the losers' path in the third round of UEFA Champions League qualifying enter the playoffs of UEFA Europa League. Also, teams that fail in the third round of UEFA Champions League qualifying in the league path and those that lose in the playoffs enter the group stage of UEFA Europa League. The third-placed teams in the group stage of UEFA Champions League also join the competition in the first knockout round.
Format: The competition consists of eight rounds, including qualifying rounds, playoffs, and knockout stages, all conducted in a two-legged knockout format, with matches decided on a home-and-away basis. If the aggregate score is tied after two legs, extra time is played to determine the winner. There is no away goal rule in the Europa League, and if the score remains tied after extra time, the winner is decided by a penalty shootout.
The group stage of the UEFA Europa League consists of double round-robin matches. Thirty-two teams, including 10 winners from the UEFA Europa League playoffs, 10 losing teams from the UEFA Champions League playoffs, and 12 teams directly qualifying for the group stage, are divided into eight groups. The winners of each group advance directly to the round of 16, while the runners-up and the third-placed teams from the UEFA Champions League group stage compete in playoffs for the remaining eight round of 16 spots.
Final: The final is held at a neutral venue to ensure neither team has a home advantage, and it is a single match. If the score is tied after 90 minutes, extra time is played, and if the score is still tied after extra time, a penalty shootout decides the winner.
The eventual champion of the UEFA Europa League qualifies directly for the group stage of the following season's UEFA Champions League. |
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Post time 1-3-2024 10:04:13