Tonight’s Europa League final in Istanbul could influence not only the fate of Aston Villa and Freiburg, but also the distribution of next season’s UEFA Champions League places.
As reported by İdman.Biz, UEFA regulations guarantee the Europa League winners a direct place in the Champions League league phase. However, Aston Villa’s situation is more complicated because the English club are already in position to qualify for Europe’s top competition through the Premier League.
At the moment, Aston Villa sit fourth in the Premier League with 62 points. Liverpool are directly behind them on 59 points, but the Merseyside club have a superior goal difference, which is the first tiebreaker. That means Liverpool could still overtake Unai Emery’s team in the final round of the season.
The final league position of Aston Villa will determine where England’s additional Champions League place goes. One important detail is that the Europa League winner’s place and England’s extra European Performance Spot are allocated through different UEFA mechanisms.
If Aston Villa win the Europa League and finish fourth in the Premier League, they would already qualify for the Champions League through their domestic league position. In that case, their Europa League winners’ place would become vacant and would not go to the sixth-placed Premier League side. Instead, it would be awarded to the club with the highest UEFA coefficient among teams involved in Champions League qualification. At present, that club is Sporting Lisbon.
At the same time, the fifth-placed Premier League team would still qualify for the Champions League through the European Performance Spot, which England earned thanks to the overall performances of its clubs in European competitions this season. As a result, England would still have five clubs in next season’s Champions League if Aston Villa finish fourth.
The situation changes completely if Aston Villa win the Europa League but drop to fifth place in the Premier League after the final round. In that scenario, the Birmingham club would qualify for the Champions League as Europa League winners, while England’s additional European Performance Spot would pass to the next highest Premier League side. That is why sixth place in the Premier League could also become a Champions League position under those circumstances.
At present, Bournemouth are the main contenders for that position, although Brighton still have a theoretical chance. For both clubs, the Europa League final could therefore have enormous importance. An Aston Villa victory, combined with the right Premier League outcome, could open the door to the Champions League for one of them.
If Freiburg win the final, however, the situation becomes far simpler. The German club would qualify directly for the Champions League as Europa League winners, while sixth place in the Premier League would not provide access to Europe’s top competition.
That means tonight’s Europa League final is about far more than simply lifting a trophy in Istanbul. Behind one match lies a much more complex battle over Champions League qualification places. As it turns out, the fate of England’s additional Champions League spot may depend not only on whether Aston Villa win the final, but also on where Unai Emery’s side finish in the Premier League table.
