2025/26 Europa League: Meet the finalists

There are just two teams left standing in the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League, with Freiburg taking on Aston Villa in the decider in Istanbul.

Get the lowdown on the contenders.

UEFA coefficient rankings accurate as of 8 May.

Freiburg (GER)

League phase position: 7
Round of 16: 5-2agg vs Genk
Quarter-finals: 6-1agg vs Celta
Semi-finals: 4-3agg vs Braga
UEFA coefficient ranking: 44

Last season: Not in European competition
Best UEFA Cup/Europa League performance: Round of 16 (2022/23, 2023/24)

After battling their way up to the Bundesliga in the 1990s, Freiburg were nicknamed the Breisgau-Brazilians for their attractive style of play. Current coach Julian Schuster spent ten years at the club as a midfielder, then worked as assistant to his predecessor Christian Streich before taking command in 2024.

Campaign so far: Freiburg have enjoyed a historic season since making it to the last eight and have now reached their first European final. The first-leg defeat at Braga in the semi-final was the first game in which they had conceded twice in this Europa League season, but they took full advantage after their opponents were reduced to ten men early in the second leg. Perennial underdogs, Schuster's men always have something to prove and have been showing their best side in Europe. Now they want to crown their season with the first trophy in club history.
– Judith Tuffentsammer, Freiburg reporter

How they play: Freiburg have been a defensive powerhouse in this year's competition, boasting the best defence in the league phase and conceding just ten goals in their 14 matches on the way to the final, while winning all seven of their home games. Defensive midfielders Maximilian Eggestein and Johan Manzambi with centre-back Matthias Ginter behind them have been the backbone of this excellent record, with a combination of youthful and experienced options in several key positions giving them different dynamics across the pitch.
– Judith Tuffentsammer, Freiburg reporter

Aston Villa (ENG)

League phase position: 2
Round of 16: 3-0agg vs Lille
Quarter-finals: 7-1agg vs Bologna
Semi-finals: 4-1agg vs Nottingham Forest
UEFA coefficient ranking: 19
Last season: Champions League quarter-finals (L4-5agg vs Paris)
Best UEFA Cup/Europa League performance: Quarter-finals (1977/78, 1997/98, 2025/26)

European Cup winners in 1982, Villa reached the semi-finals of the 2023/24 Conference League and the final eight of last season's Champions League, and are now through to their first continental final in 44 years. Coach Unai Emery has won the Europa League four times – three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal – making him the most successful coach in the competition's history.

Campaign so far: Until the semi-finals, the road to Aston Villa's second major European final pretty much ran as smoothly as could have been hoped. Seven wins from eight were enough to wrap up second spot in the league phase, before Lille and Bologna were summarily dispatched in the last 16 and quarter-finals. English rivals Nottingham Forest provided a sizeable bump in the road in the semi-finals, but the 1-0 first-leg defeat was cancelled out with a 4-0 success in Birmingham, Emery's side's tenth successive home win in Europe.
– John Atkin, Aston Villa reporter

How they play: Unai Emery very rarely deviates from the fluid 4-2-3-1 formation that has brought him so much success since his arrival at Villa Park in November 2022. Villa have proved tough to break down, not least because of the occasional heroics of Emiliano Martínez, and have kept eight clean sheets in the competition. Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans and John McGinn are chief creators going forward, with McGinn and Ollie Watkins both scoring five each en route to Istanbul.
– John Atkin, Aston Villa reporter