The UEFA Europa League is an ambitious and competitive annual football competition organised by the European Union of national football clubs. It is one of the most watched competitions in Europe with thousands of fans tuning in to watch from different countries. It is a three round knock out competition consisting of two legs and a final. The teams are ranked according to the point that they have in their respective tables.
This competition is widely regarded as the most difficult cup competition in the European soccer league. The qualification process of the competition is extremely tough and includes several steps and step by step instructions that should be followed to increase the chances of your team qualifying for the competition. Unlike other cups, the qualification process of the EUROPA LEAGUE is not decided by simple voting among the teams, rather the rankings are decided by a panel of neutral people who are appointed by the association of clubs that represent different nations. The most important criterion for the qualification of a team is its finish position during the previous competition.
In the last four years, the ranking system of the competition has undergone some changes that affected the ranking points of the teams. The ranking points are determined by how well a team performed throughout the year. If a team finishes the season with more points than its opponents, it will receive an extra point and be considered for the next season’s competition. This way, it enables a team to qualify for the european team of giants which are represented by Chelsea, Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, AC Milan, Fiorentina, Sevilla and Benfica.
There is no doubt that the participation in the EUROPA LEAGUE gives you the opportunity to see some of the top European teams play against some of the best from other countries. You will witness a wide range of football as the competition includes teams from all over Europe. You can also see the quality of players playing for these teams. You may watch great matches with the super powers of Barcelona, Chelsea, Manchester United or AC Milan.
Qualifying rounds of the EUROPA LEAGUE are held in different countries each quarter of the year. For example, from the first week of July until the eleventh of August, the competition is played in the United Kingdom. During the rest of the summer, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Norway, Poland, Luxembourg, Croatia, Cyprus, Slovakia and Austria take part in the competition. Competitors may come from any country that belongs to the European Union and it is free to play for all those countries during the qualification rounds. For those teams that qualify automatically for the european countries, they will be given an entry to the playoffs.
The new competition format was introduced to increase the interest of the fans and viewers in the European soccer tournaments. It is interesting to follow the progress of the competition. Each team that qualifies for the playoffs is guaranteed a place in the following season matches, which starts in September/October.