In just its second season of existence, the UEFA Europa Conference League is a brand new competition to give teams across Europe another avenue of continental competition.
Sitting below the Champions League and Europa League in the pecking order, the Europa Conference League combines teams that qualify directly via domestic league table position along with those that drop from the other two competitions.
AS Roma hoisted the trophy last season to win the first-ever UEFA Europa Conference League title. They qualified for the Europa League in doing so, and thus will only be able to defend their title if they finish third in their Europa League group, thus dropping down to the Europa Conference League knockout stage.
The Sporting News brings you all the important information about the 2022/23 Europa Conference League, including teams involved, format, prize money, and schedule for this year's competition.
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How Europa Conference League works
The Europa Conference League format is constructed much like its sister competition, the UEFA Champions League.
Following a lengthy qualifying and playoff round, a 32-team group stage is contested. The group winners get a bye to the Round of 16, while the second-place finishers are slotted into the knockout playoff round.
2022/23 Europa Conference League schedule
Preliminary and qualifying rounds schedule
| Round | Draw | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round | June 14, 2022 | July 7, 2022 | July 14, 2022 |
| Second qualifying round | June 15, 2022 | July 21, 2022 | July 28, 2022 |
| Third qualifying round | July 18, 2022 | Aug. 4, 2022 | Aug. 11, 2022 |
| Playoff qualifying round | Aug. 2, 2022 | Aug. 18, 2022 | Aug. 25, 2022 |
Group stage schedule
The draw for the 2022/23 Europa Conference League group stage will take place on August 26, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey.
| Matchday | Dates |
|---|---|
| 1 | Sept. 8, 2022 |
| 2 | Sept. 15, 2022 |
| 3 | Oct. 6, 2022 |
| 4 | Oct. 13, 2022 |
| 5 | Oct. 27, 2022 |
| 6 | Nov. 3, 2022 |
Knockout stage schedule
The draw for the 2022/23 Europa Conference League knockout round playoffs will take place on November 7, 2022, and the draw for the Round of 16 will take place on February 24, 2023. The draw for the rest of the 2022-23 Europa League knockout stage will take place on March 17, 2023.
The 2023 Europa Conference League final will be in Prague, Czech Republic on June 7, 2023.
| Round | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|
| Knockout Playoffs | Feb. 16, 2023 | Feb. 23, 2023 |
| Round of 16 | Mar. 9, 2023 | Mar. 16, 2023 |
| Quarterfinals | Apr. 13, 2023 | Apr. 20, 2023 |
| Semifinals | May 11, 2023 | May 18, 2023 |
| Final | June 7, 2023 | |
Teams in Europa Conference League
The lengthy qualifying rounds saw a total of 133 clubs from across Europe enter the competition at various stages.
Just 22 of those clubs will reach the group stage, joined by 10 teams dropping down from losses in the Europa League playoff round.
Below are all the teams who could end up in the Europa Conference League group stage with either wins in the UECL playoff round or losses in the UEL playoff round.
Europa Conference League playoff round
Teams in this round are competing for a spot in the Europa Conference League group stage. Losers in this round will be eliminated from European competition.
Champions Path
| Team 1 | Team 2 | Leg 1 | Leg 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| NK Maribor (SVN) | CFR 1907 Cluj (ROU) | 0-0 | Aug 25 |
| RFS (LVA) | Linfield FC (NIR) | 2-2 | Aug 25 |
| KKS Lech Poznań (POL) | F91 Diddeleng (LUX) | 2-0 | Aug 25 |
| FC Shkupi 1927 (MKD) | Ballkani (KOS) | 1-2 | Aug 25 |
| HŠK Zrinjski (BIH) | ŠK Slovan Bratislava (SVK) | 1-0 | Aug 25 |
Team 1 plays first leg at home. Scorelines are written with home score first in both legs.
Main Path
| Team 1 | Team 2 | Leg 1 | Leg 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| PFC CSKA-Sofia (BUL) | FC Basel 1893 (SUI) | 1-0 | Aug 25 |
| FC Vaduz (LIE) | SK Rapid Wien (AUT) | 1-1 | Aug 25 |
| Raków Czestochowa (POL) | SK Slavia Praha (CZE) | 2-1 | Aug 25 |
| Djurgårdens IF (SWE) | APOEL FC (CYP) | 3-0 | Aug 25 |
| Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC (ISR) | OGC Nice (FRA) | 1-0 | Aug 25 |
| Universitatea Craiova (ROU) | Hapoel Beer-Sheva FC (ISR) | 1-1 | Aug 25 |
| İstanbul Başakşehir FK (TUR) | Royal Antwerp FC (BEL) | 1-1 | Aug 25 |
| Fotbal Club FCSB (ROU) | Viking FK (NOR) | 1-2 | Aug 25 |
| FK Partizan Belgrade (SRB) | Hamrun Spartans FC (MLT) | 4-1 | Aug 25 |
| ACF Fiorentina (ITA) | FC Twente (NED) | 2-1 | Aug 25 |
| Villarreal CF (ESP) | HNK Hajduk Split (CRO) | 4-2 | Aug 25 |
| FC Köln (GER) | Fehérvár FC (HUN) | 1-2 | Aug 25 |
| West Ham United FC (ENG) | Viborg FF (DEN) | 3-1 | Aug 25 |
| BSC Young Boys (SUI) | RSC Anderlecht (BEL) | 0-1 | Aug 25 |
| 1. FC Slovácko (CZE) | AIK (SWE) | 3-0 | Aug 25 |
| Molde FK (NOR) | Wolfsberger AC (AUT) | 0-1 | Aug 25 |
| AZ Alkmaar (NED) | Gil Vicente FC (POR) | 4-0 | Aug 25 |
Team 1 plays first leg at home. Scorelines are written with home score first in both legs.
Europa League playoff round
Teams in the Europa League playoff round are competing for a spot in the Europa League group stage. Losers in this round will drop down to the Europa Conference League group stage.
| Match | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|
| SC Dnipro-1 (Ukraine) vs. AEK Larnaca (Cyprus) | 1-2 | Aug. 25 |
| KAA Gent (Belgium) vs. Omonia (Cyprus) | 0-2 | Aug. 25 |
| Austria Wien (Austria) vs. Fenerbahce (Turkey) | 0-2 | Aug. 25 |
| FC Zurich (Switzerland) vs. Heart of Midlothian (Scotland) | 2-1 | Aug. 25 |
| HJK Helsinki (Finland) vs. Silkeborg IF (Denmark) | 1-0 | Aug. 25 |
| Malmo FF (Sweden) vs. Sivasspor (Turkey) | 3-1 | Aug. 25 |
| Ferencvaros (Hungary) vs. Shamrock Rovers (Ireland) | 4-0 | Aug. 25 |
| Apollon Limassol (Cyprus) vs. Olympiacos (Greece) | 1-1 | Aug. 25 |
| FC Pyunik (Armenia) vs. Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova) | 0-0 | Aug. 25 |
| Ludogorets (Bulgaria) vs. Zalgiris (Lithuania) | 1-0 | Aug. 25 |
Favourites to win Europa Conference League
There are no betting odds available just yet for who will win the Europa Conference League, as those will likely be out once the knockout stage is set and teams dropping down from the Europa League are confirmed.
Often, those teams dropping down from more prestigious competitions are considered favourites to win the Europa Conference League as they become the strongest sides remaining in the tournament.
However, they have tough competition. In the tournament's inaugural year, AS Roma hoisted the title, having progressed through the group stage and remained unblemished through the final. They downed Leicester City on their way to the title, a team which dropped down from the Europa League.
This year, the likes of West Ham, Villarreal, Nice, Fiorentina, and Fenerbahce have to consider themselves amongst the favourites in the competition of the teams that are currently set to take part.
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When and where is Europa Conference League final?
The final of the 2022/23 Europa Conference League will take place on June 7, 2023 at Fortuna Arena in Prague, Czech Republic.
Fortuna Arena is the home ground of SK Slavia Prague, who are currently competing in the Europa Conference League playoff round.
The Czech Republic national team also plays matches at the arena, including a recent 2-2 draw against Spain in the UEFA Nations League back in June, 2022. The national team topped England 2-1 in Euro 2020 qualifying at Fortuna Arena, with Germany, Brazil, and Belgium all taking part in international matches against the Czech Republic at the ground as well.
The ground opened in 2006 and seats 20,800 fans, which places it as the largest football ground in the Czech Republic.
Europa Conference League prize money
UEFA have announced the prize money for all continental club competitions, with the Europa Conference League included in the mix.
A full purse of €235 million will be available to clubs participating in the 2022/23 Europa Conference League. A perfect record through the group stage and knockout stage all the way through to a victory in the finals could see a team earn a maximum pay out of €12.25 million (£10.2m/$12.4m)
In last year's competition, AS Roma, the winners of the 2021/22 UECL final, landed a €5.1 million (£4.25m/$5.35m) pay out with runners-up Feyenoord receiving €3 million (£2.5m/$3.1m) for their efforts.
| Stage qualified/Result | Prize Money |
| Winner | €2.0m |
| Runner-up | €3.0m |
| Semi-finalists | €2.0m |
| Quarter-finalists | €1.0m |
| Round of 16 | €600k |
| Knockout round playoffs | €300k |
| Group winners | €650k |
| Group runners-up | €325k |
| Group-stage win | €500k |
| Group-stage draw | €166k |
| Group-stage qualification | €2.94m |
How to watch UEFA Europa Conference League 2022/23
| Country | TV channel | Streaming |
|---|---|---|
| UK | BT Sport 1/BT Sport Ultimate | BT Sport app, BT Sport YouTube |
| USA | CBS (EN), Univision/TUDN (ESP) | fuboTV, Paramount+, ViX |
| Australia | — | Stan Sport |
| Canada | — | DAZN |
Select matches from the Europa Conference League preliminary rounds are available for broadcast, chosen by the broadcast partner for each market.
Per UEFA, other select matches are made available for streaming by the home team, often via their official YouTube page.
