After the thrilling conclusion to Champions League action the day before, the Europa League takes centre stage to determined the 24 participants for the knockout stage.

Teams which finish in the top eight positions earn a coveted bye straight through to the Round of 16, while those that finish ninth through 24th in the league phase standings will enter the knockout playoff round.

Thus, nearly every match on the final day has something at stake, whether it be teams fighting for top eight spots, those pushing for playoff round seeding, or just fighting to stay alive in the competition altogether.

Here is a run-down of how things look in terms of teams qualifying for all the various positions, as well as those eliminated.

The Sporting News is following the final day of the Europa League league phase, updating these standings live as the games are happening.

MORE: All teams qualified to the Champions League knockout stage, including those with Round of 16 byes

Teams in Europa League knockouts: Final standings

The top eight teams in the league-phase table qualify directly to the Round of 16, bypassing the playoff round completely.

It’s an extremely coveted position as those sides not only avoid the peril of a playoff matchup but are also seeded in the Round of 16 draw, so they will be partnered with an opponent that finished lower in the table.

Live standings for Europa League league phase

Heading into the final matchday of league phase play, only Lyon and Aston Villa have clinched a top eight spot. The other six spots are up for grabs depending on the results of the final matchday.

As it stands with the final matchday in play, here’s who would go through to the Round of 16 if results hold along with the latest score of their game in play:

Qualified for Round of 16:

1. Aston Villa (D 0-0 vs. RB Salzburg)
2. Lyon (L 1-0 at PAOK)
3. SC Freiburg (D 0-0 at Lille)
4. Midtjylland (D 0-0 vs. Dinamo Zagreb)
5. Real Betis (W 1-0 vs. Feyenoord)
6. Braga (D 0-0 at Go Ahead Eagles)
7. AS Roma (D 0-0 at Panathinaikos)
8. VfB Stuttgart (W 2-0 vs. BSC Young Boys)

Entering knockout stage playoffs:

Coming into the final matchday of league phase play, only five of the 16 playoff round positions were up for grabs, as 11 clubs had mathematically confirmed a place in the knockout round.

As it stands with the final matchday in play, here’s who would go through to the knockout playoff round if results hold along with the latest score of their game in play:

9. PAOK (W 1-0 vs. Lyon)
10. Porto (D 1-1 vs. Rangers)
11. Ferencvaros (L 2-0 at Nottingham Forest)
12. Nottingham Forest (W 2-0 vs. Ferencvaros)
13. Fenerbahce (W 1-0 at FCSB)
14. Red Star Belgrade (D 0-0 vs. Celta Vigo)
15. Celta Vigo (D 0-0 at Red Star Belgrade)
16. Bologna (D 0-0 at Maccabi Tel Aviv)
17. Genk (L 1-0 vs. Malmo)
18. Viktoria Plzen (D 0-0 at Basel)
19. Panathinaikos (D 0-0 vs. AS Roma)
20. Celtic (W 3-0 vs. FC Utrecht)
21. Dinamo Zagreb (D 0-0 at Midtjylland)
22. Lille (D 0-0 vs. SC Freiburg)
23. Brann (D 0-0 at Sturm Graz)
24. BSC Young Boys (L 2-0 at VfB Stuttgart)

Eliminated from Europa League:

Heading into the final matchday of league phase play, only six clubs had been eliminated from knockout stage contention.

As it stands with the final round of games currently in play, here’s who would be eliminated from knockout stage contention if results hold along with the latest score of their game in play:

25. Ludogorets (D 0-0 vs. Nice)
26. Basel (D 0-0 vs. Viktoria Plzen)
27. RB Salzburg (D 0-0 at Aston Villa)
28. Go Ahead Eagles (D 0-0 vs. Braga)
29. Feyenoord (L 1-0 at Real Betis)
30. FCSB (L 1-0 vs. Fenerbahce)
31. Rangers (W 1-1 at Porto)
32. Sturm Graz (D 0-0 vs. Brann)
33. Nice (D 0-0 at Ludogorets)
34. Malmo FF (W 1-0 at Genk)
35. Maccabi Tel Aviv (D 0-0 vs. Bologna)
36. FC Utrecht (L 3-0 at Celtic)

Which teams have qualified for Europa League knockouts?

After matchday seven in 2025/26, Lyon and Aston Villa were the only teams to have mathematically guaranteed a bye to the Round of 16. The remaining six will have their spots confirmed on January 29.

Teams in qualified for Europa League Round of 16

Teams qualified for Europa League League knockout playoffs

Below the top eight Round of 16 byes, the next 16 clubs qualify to the knockout-round playoffs.

Positions 9-16 will be seeded in the playoff-round draw and will have the preferred second-leg home match, while positions 17-24 are unseeded.

Entering the final matchday, those teams within reach of the final Round of 16 bye were coincidentally also the same group of clubs which had mathematically distanced themselves from the elimination places, as the points gap above and below was the same.

Teams clinching Europa League knockout playoff spots 2025/26

* Can still qualify for Round of 16 bye

Teams eliminated from Europa League 2025/26

Coming into matchweek eight, only six teams had their interest in the competition completely ended, meaning 30 of the 36 competitors still had something at stake as league phase play wrapped up on January 29.

Teams below the cut line do not drop down to the Conference League, and are instead fully eliminated from European play.

Teams eliminated from the Europa League

* Can still qualify for knockout playoff round

When are the Europa League knockout playoffs 2025/26?

The first legs of the playoff matches will take place on Thursday, February 19, 2026.

The return legs are a week later on Thursday, February 26.

Seeded teams will be home for the second leg, while unseeded teams will host the first leg.

When are Europa League Round of 16 games 2025/26?

The Round of 16 games will be played over Thursday, March 12 (first leg) and Thursday, March 19 (second leg).

Teams that earn a bye straight to this round do not need to contest knockout playoff matches, and thus will be off from the competition until this point.

Like the knockout playoff round, those seeded teams which earned byes will be home for the second leg, while those progressing from the knockout playoff round will host the first leg.