The Europa League group stage draw was made this morning in Istanbul, Turkey. The draw was assisted by former Villarreal player Marcos Senna.
Meanwhile, Gerard Moreno of Villarreal was awarded the Player of the Competition award for 2020/21. The Spaniard was instrumental in his side’s run to the final and success over Manchester United in the final.
The Europa League has a new format this season due to the introduction of the Europa Conference League. There are now only 32 teams involved in the group stage instead of the previous 48. The group winner will progress to the round of 16. Runners-up will also progress and face one of the third-placed Champions League teams in the knockout round. Third-place teams will drop into the Europa Conference League, where they will face a runner-up from that competition’s group stage.
Europa League Group Stage Draw
Key Draws
Steven Gerrard’s Rangers side face a potentially tough group, with last season’s Ligue 1 fourth-placed side Lyon and Czech runners-up Sparta Prague. Their group is completed with Danish side Brondby.
Leicester City, who qualified for the competition after a fifth-place finish in the Premier League last season, will face tests against Serie A side Napoli as well as long trips to Spartak Moscow and Legia Warsaw.
Finally, West Ham United, who are making their first appearance in the group stages of this competition, will come up against Dinamo Zagreb, Genk and Rapid Vienna.
Draw in Full
Group A
Lyon
Rangers
Sparta Prague
Brondby
Group B
Monaco
PSV Eindhoven
Real Sociedad
Sturm Graz
Group C
Napoli
Leicester City
Spartak Moscow
Legia Warsaw
Group D
Olympiacos
Eintracht Frankfurt
Fenerbahce
Royal Antwerp
Group E
Lazio
Lokomotiv Moscow
Marseille
Galatasaray
Group F
Braga
Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade)
Ludogorets
Midtjylland
Group G
Bayer Leverkusen
Celtic
Real Betis
Ferencvaros
Group H
Dinamo Zagreb
Genk
West Ham United
Rapid Vienna
Main Photo
