Every tie from the knockout play-offs to the final, and the route Aston Villa took to the trophy.
Updated 20 May 2026, after the last game
Aston Villa beat LOSC Lille 3-0 on aggregate in the round of 16, Bologna 7-1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals, Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate in the semi-finals and SC Freiburg 3-0 in the final to win the 2025/2026 Europa League.
Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Sporting Braga and SC Freiburg reached the semi-finals of the 2025/2026 Europa League. Aston Villa beat Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate and SC Freiburg beat Sporting Braga 4-3 on aggregate to reach the final.
In the quarter-finals of the 2025/2026 Europa League, Aston Villa beat Bologna 7-1 on aggregate, Nottingham Forest beat Porto 2-1 on aggregate, Sporting Braga beat Real Betis 5-3 on aggregate and SC Freiburg beat Celta de Vigo 6-1 on aggregate.
Two knockout ties in the 2025/2026 Europa League went to penalties: Panathinaikos beat Viktoria Plzeň after 3-3 on aggregate in the knockout play-offs and Nottingham Forest beat FC Midtjylland after 2-2 on aggregate in the round of 16.
The biggest win in the knockout stage of the 2025/2026 Europa League was Aston Villa beating Bologna 7-1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals. SC Freiburg beat Celta de Vigo 6-1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals, the next biggest.
Every knockout tie in the 2025/2026 Europa League was played over two legs, home and away, apart from the final, a single match on 20 May 2026. Two of the 22 two-legged ties were level on aggregate and went to penalties.
| Round | Tie | Score | Went through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knockout play-offs | Brann vs Bologna | 0-2 on aggregate | Bologna |
| Knockout play-offs | LOSC Lille vs Crvena Zvezda | 2-1 on aggregate | LOSC Lille |
| Knockout play-offs | Fenerbahçe vs Nottingham Forest | 2-4 on aggregate | Nottingham Forest |
| Knockout play-offs | Celtic vs VfB Stuttgart | 2-4 on aggregate | VfB Stuttgart |
| Knockout play-offs | Ludogorets vs Ferencvárosi | 2-3 on aggregate | Ferencvárosi |
| Knockout play-offs | Panathinaikos vs Viktoria Plzeň | 3-3 on aggregate, Panathinaikos won on penalties | Panathinaikos |
| Knockout play-offs | Dinamo Zagreb vs Genk | 4-6 on aggregate | Genk |
| Knockout play-offs | PAOK vs Celta de Vigo | 1-3 on aggregate | Celta de Vigo |
| Round of 16 | Bologna vs Roma | 5-4 on aggregate | Bologna |
| Round of 16 | LOSC Lille vs Aston Villa | 0-3 on aggregate | Aston Villa |
| Round of 16 | Nottingham Forest vs FC Midtjylland | 2-2 on aggregate, Nottingham Forest won on penalties | Nottingham Forest |
| Round of 16 | VfB Stuttgart vs Porto | 1-4 on aggregate | Porto |
| Round of 16 | Ferencvárosi vs Sporting Braga | 2-4 on aggregate | Sporting Braga |
| Round of 16 | Panathinaikos vs Real Betis | 1-4 on aggregate | Real Betis |
| Round of 16 | Genk vs SC Freiburg | 2-5 on aggregate | SC Freiburg |
| Round of 16 | Celta de Vigo vs Olympique Lyonnais | 3-1 on aggregate | Celta de Vigo |
| Quarter-finals | Bologna vs Aston Villa | 1-7 on aggregate | Aston Villa |
| Quarter-finals | Porto vs Nottingham Forest | 1-2 on aggregate | Nottingham Forest |
| Quarter-finals | Sporting Braga vs Real Betis | 5-3 on aggregate | Sporting Braga |
| Quarter-finals | SC Freiburg vs Celta de Vigo | 6-1 on aggregate | SC Freiburg |
| Semi-finals | Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa | 1-4 on aggregate | Aston Villa |
| Semi-finals | Sporting Braga vs SC Freiburg | 3-4 on aggregate | SC Freiburg |
| Final | SC Freiburg vs Aston Villa | 0-3 | Aston Villa |