The competition’s group stages is edging closer, and Goal round up key dates, information and the important details you need to know ahead of the draw
European heavyweights such as Arsenal and Manchester United will battle it out in the Europa League this season, with a place in next season’s Champions League the prize for the winners.
Last season’s winners Chelsea are not participating in the competition as they secured a Champions League berth with their third-placed finish in the Premier League.
Beaten finalists Arsenal feature in the competition for the third consecutive year after losing 4-1 to the Blues in the final in Baku.
Roma, Sevilla, Celtic and Porto are among the other giants competing in Europe’s secondary competition.
As the teams get ready to find out which group they will be in, Goal brings you everything you need to know about the draw.
When is the Europa League group stage draw?
The draw for the 2019-20 Europa League group stage will take place on Friday August 30, 2019 .
Draw proceedings are scheduled to begin at 12pm BST (7am ET).
It will be held in Monaco at the Grimaldi Forum, which has become a traditional venue for UEFA draws and events in recent years.
How to watch the Europa League group stage draw
The Europa League group stage draw can be watched live on UEFA’s website, which can be accessed worldwide by clicking here .
In the UK it can also be followed on BT Sport, who will also be streaming it live on the BT Sport app.
Which teams are in the Europa League group stage draw?
The Europa League group stage draw will involve 48 teams, who will be divided into 12 groups of four.
The group winners and runners-up advance to the round of 32, where they are joined by the eight third-placed teams of the Champions League group stage.
Teams are seeded in four pots based on their UEFA coefficient.
| Pot One | Pot Two | Pot Three | Pot Four |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sevilla | PSV | Saint-Etienne | AZ Alkmaar |
| Arsenal | Krasnodar | Qarabag | Vitoria Guimaraes |
| Porto | Celtic | Feyenoord | Trabzonspor |
| Roma | FC Copenhagen | Getafe | Olexandriya |
| Manchester United | Braga | Espanyol | Dudelange |
| Dynamo Kiev | Gent | Malmo | LASK Linz |
| Besiktas | Borussia Monchengladbach | Partizan | Wolfsberger |
| Basel | Young Boys | Standard Liege | Slovan Bratislava |
| Sporting CP | Astana | Wolves | Lugano |
| CSKA Moscow | Ludogorets | Rennes | Rangers |
| Wolfsburg | APOEL | Rosenborg | CFR Cluj |
| Lazio | Eintracht Frankfurt | Istanbul Basaksehir | Ferencvaros |
The likes of Manchester United, Arsenal, Roma, Sevilla, Lazio and Besiktas are in Pot One, while PSV, Borussia Monchengladbach, Celtic and last year’s semi-finalists, Eintracht Frankfurt, are in Pot Two.
Pot Three includes Premier League side Wolves as well as Feyenoord, Espanyol and Saint-Etienne while Rangers are joined in Pot Four by the likes of AZ Alkmaar, Trabzonspor and Slovan Bratislava.
How does the draw work?
Teams are drawn from each pot and placed into groups A to L.
Teams from the same nation in different pots cannot be drawn into the same group.
Pots two, thee and four are decided by the clubs’ UEFA coefficient, which ranks their European performance over the last five years.
When do the Europa League group stage games start?
The 2019-20 Europa League group stage kicks off on September 19, 2019.
Group stage games will continue for a total of six matchdays, with teams playing each other home and away.
The date for matchday six – the final round of group stage matches – is December 12.
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