The intermediate round is also drawn in the Europa League on Friday. 16 teams hope for a place in the round of 16.
The last matchday of the Europa League is over. Now the focus is on the draws of the encounters in the intermediate round and in the round of 16. The Frankfurt Eintracht is dealing with the winner of a four-man duel of the playoffs.
The most important findings for the Bundesliga teams
- Eintracht Frankfurt stands in the round of 16 and gets one of these four opponents: FCS Bucharest, Ajax Amsterdam, Union Saint Gilloise, Paok Saloniki
- TSG Hoffenheim is excreted
The decisions of the last match day
- In the round of 16: Lazio Rome, Athletic Bilbao, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Eintracht Frankfurt, Olympique Lyon, Olympiakos Piraeus, Rangers FC
- The intermediate round have reached: FK Bodö/Glimt, RSC Anderlecht, FCS Bucharest, Ajax Amsterdam, Real Sociedad San Sebastian, Galatasaray Istanbul, As Rome, Viktoria Pilsen (all set), Ferencvarosi TC, FC Porto, AZ Alkmaar, FC Midtjland, Union Saint-Gilloise, PAOK, PAOK Saloniki, Twente Enschede, Fenerbahce Istanbul (all unscathed)
- Have left: Sporting Braga, IF Elfsborg, TSG Hoffenheim, Besiktas Istanbul, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Slavia Prague, Malmö FF, FK Riga FS, Ludogorez Razgrad, Dynamo Kiev, OGS Nizza, Qarabag KF,
How does the intermediate round run?
The intermediate round (playoffs) will be drawn on Friday at 1 p.m. (CET). There are so -called lottery pairs. All teams who play along will know in advance which two opponents are possible.
This constellation results from the tournament tree (table places in brackets):
- Ferencvaros (17) or Porto (18) against Roma (15) or Pilsen (16)
- Twente (23) or Fenerbahce (24) against Bodö/Glimt (9) or Anderlecht (10)
- Union Saint-Gilloise (21) or Paok Saloniki (22) against Bucharest (11) or Ajax (12)
- Alkmaar (19) or Midtjylland (20) against San Sebastian (13) or Galatasaray (14)
The teams of places 9 to 16 have home rights in the second leg, they are “set”. The teams of places 17 to 24 are “unsetz with”.
UEFA Europa League draw
The draw runs like this:
- There are eight loose pots, there is a “lot pair” in everyone.
- First, the eight “unsettled” teams are distributed on the tournament tree, starting with a couple 23/24.
- The team pulled first is placed on one side of the tournament tree, the club that was drawn afterwards on the other side.
- The eight “set” clubs are then drawn on the same principle, starting with a couple 15/16.
Teams from the same country can meet. This restriction was only valid in the league. Clubs that have already played against each other in the league can be drawn into an encounter.
What’s next?
The eight winners reach the round of 16, for which the teams of the first eight table positions are already qualified. On February 21st, the same principle is drawn (table places in brackets):
- One of the two winners from Ferencvaros (17) or Porto (18) against AS Rome (15) or Pilsen (16) meets Lazio Rome (1) or Athletic Bilbao (2)
- One of the two winners from Enschhede (23) or Fenerbahce (24) against Bodö/Glimt (9) or Anderlecht (10) meets Olympiacos (7) or Rangers (8)
- One of the two winners from Union Saint-Gilloise (21) or PAOK (22) against Bucharest (11) or Ajax (12) meets Eintracht Frankfurt (5) or Lyon (6)
- One of the two winners from Alkmaar (19) or Midtjylland (20) against San Sebastian (13) or Galatasaray (14) meets United (3) or Tottenham (4)
Here the teams of places 1 to 8 have home rights in the second leg. For the quarter -finals and the semi -finals, the home right will also be drawn on February 21.
Why all of this?
The new mode is part of the reform of the European Cup in the 2024/25 season. The UEFA wanted to counter the trend that many decisions had already been made in the groups before the last matchday. The new format brings excitement into the last matchday. But there are also teams in the new format for which there is nothing more.
When will the remaining games be played?
- Intermediate round: February 13th and February 20th
- Right -time final: March 6th and March 13th
- Quarter -finals: April 10th and April 17th
- Half -final: May 1st and May 8th
- Final game in Bilbao: May 21
Stadium San Mames in Bilbao
“Lot pairs” – what is that supposed to do?
The system of the “lot pairs” prevents a team from trying to qualify for a supposedly lighter side of the tournament tree.
The principle also leaves an organizational back door in the three European competitions if politically prohibited games are to be excluded. This applies, for example, to encounters between teams from Azerbaijan and Armenia or from Kosovo and Serbia.