The draw for the group stage of the Europa League was held this afternoon at 13:00 CET at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Just a day after Champions League teams found out about their opponents, Manchester United, Southampton and 46 more football clubs finally discovered who they face in Europe.
Europa League, just like its “sibling” the Champions League, is a truly global event that certainly every football fan around the world is waiting for.
Today’s ceremony was hosted by Darren Tulett, but former footballers Andrés Palop and Patrik Andersson also attended the event with UEFA competitions director Giorgio Marchetti to help with the draw.
The Reds earned their place in the contest after finishing fifth in the Premier League last season, and this is the first time they are featured in the group stage.
For this season’s tournament, the twelve groups of four were drawn from four pots.
The result of the draw shows us that we can expect big games, namely both English clubs face opponents that are not very easy to beat.
The official result of the #UELdraw pic.twitter.com/5Aw0eSrGaf
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) August 26, 2016
The first group games will take place on 15 September, with the group stage culminating on 16 December.
The final of the Europa League takes place at Solna’s Friends Arena on 24 May 2017, so if you love football put a note on your calendar right now.