UEFA Europa League Matchday 8 key questions: When are final league phase matches? Play-off format, bracket explained
By Ben Southby
Updated 27/01/2025 at 14:05 GMT
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The final matchday of the league phase campaign is upon us, and the UEFA Europa League has thrown up drama and chaos in equal measure once again. With the new format still in its debut season, we answer all your questions surrounding matchday eight - including when matches are set to be played, what happens if teams finish level on points and how teams qualify automatically for the round of 16.
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The UEFA Europa League is nearing the end of its inaugural league phase, with only a jam-packed final matchday left which will see all 36 teams kicking off at the same time.
The stakes remain high with plenty still to play for across the board, including those looking to seal a place in the top eight and others looking for a route to the round of 16 through a play-off spot.
All 18 Matchday 8 fixtures will kick off at the same time - with every kick live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Thursday - with Manchester United and Tottenham in control of their own destiny.
Spurs fired themselves into the automatic qualification spots with an away victory over Hoffenheim on the penultimate matchday and will hope to stay there when they round off their league phase campaign against Elfsborg.
The same goes for Manchester United, who secured a dramatic victory over Rangers to put one foot in the last 16. Ruben Amorim's side face Romanian side FCSB in their final game.
Further down the table, AS Roma and Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce will hope to avoid the drop and secure a qualifying spot.
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When are the final league phase matches?
Every single UEFA Europa League game in Matchday 8 will kick-off at 20:00 UK time on Thursday, January 30.
It is set to be a bumper evening of action as the league phase draws to a halt, and you can watch all 18 matches live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Why is every match at the same time?
To maintain fairness and prevent any team from gaining an advantage by knowing other results, all matches will kick off at the same time.
Full list of Matchday 8 fixtures
Thursday, January 30 - all 20:00 UK time
- Ajax v Galatasaray
- Roma v Eintracht Frankfurt
- Athletic Club v Viktoria Plzen
- Dynamo Kyiv v RFS
- Midtjylland v Fenerbahce
- Twente v Besiktas
- Ferencvaros v AZ Alkmaar
- FCSB v Manchester United
- Maccabi Tel-Aviv v Porto
- Nice v Bodo Glimt
- Olympiacos v Qarabag
- Lyon v Ludogorets
- Rangers v Union SG
- Real Sociedad v PAOK
- Anderlecht v Hoffenheim
- Braga v Lazio
- Slavia Prague v Malmo
- Tottenham Hotspur v Elfsborg
How do teams automatically qualify for the last 16?
Only table-toppers Lazio have secured their place in the last 16 so far after amassing 19 points from seven games.
But 15 teams have at least qualified for the knockout round play-offs, including British outfits Spurs, Manchester United and Rangers, while Galatasaray, Lyon, Olympiacos and 2022 champions Eintracht Frankfurt have also done enough.
But they will all be hoping to join Lazio in the top eight and avoid a two-legged play-off with automatic entry to the last 16.
So what are the knockout phase play-offs? And when are they?
Teams finishing between ninth and 24th in the league phase table will take part in revamped play-off ties, which will be played over two legs on February 13 and 20.
Those placing between ninth and 16th will secure home advantage for the second leg of their play-offs against lower-ranked opponents.
Instead of the usual UEFA knockout draw - where any of the eight seeded teams could face any of the eight unseeded sides - the competition adopts a bracket format from the play-off stage onwards.
A draw still takes place, but the range of potential opponents is limited to just two options. For instance, the teams finishing ninth and 10th can only be drawn against those finishing 23rd and 24th, while teams finishing 11th and 12th will face either the 21st or 22nd-placed sides, and so on... Clear? Good.
Can teams from the same country face each other?
Yes, sides can face another team from the same national association from the knockout phase play-offs onwards.
Intriguingly, they can also face teams they played during the league phase.
What about the teams outside the top 24?
Those who finish outside the top 24 in the league phase will be eliminated from this year's Europa League - and all European competition.
RFS, Slavia Prague, Malmo, Ludogorets, Qarabag, Nice and Dynamo Kyiv are already definitely out.
What if teams finish level on points?
The race for a spot in the top eight is hotly-contested, with just two points separating Lyon in fifth and Olympiacos in 12th, with Spurs and Galatasaray among the teams involved in the scrap.
Three teams behind them - including Rangers - are just three points shy of the top eight, so automatic qualification will likely be decided by the smallest of margins.
So how exactly are teams separated?
According to article 18 of the UEFA Europa League's regulations, the primary factor separating teams level on points will be goal difference - as is a regular practice for major leagues and competitions.
Should teams also be locked on the same goal difference, UEFA have laid out the following criteria in order to separate them:
- Goals scored in league phase
- Away goals scored in league phase
- Number of wins in league phase
- Number of away wins in league phase
- Higher number of points obtained collectively by league phase opponents
- Superior collective goal difference of league phase opponents
- Higher number of goals scored collectively by league phase opponents
- Lower disciplinary points total based only on yellow and red cards received by players and team officials in league phase (red card = 3 points, yellow card = 1 point, expulsion for two yellow cards in one match = 3 points)
- Higher club coefficient
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UEL table
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How to watch Matchday 8 in the UEFA Europa League
All 18 matches will be available to watch live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Thursday, January 30.
TNT Sports will bring you extensive coverage from all the important matches and you can see all the goals as they fly in, with all 18 matches played concurrently on a bumper night of fixtures.
TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.
The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination.
You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media. To find out where your local establishments showing TNT Sports are, use our Pub Finder Tool.
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