Europa League quarter-final second leg: Real Betis vs Braga facts

The UEFA Europa League quarter-final between Real Betis and Braga is level at 1-1 ahead of the concluding second leg in Spain.

Florian Grillitch's clever finish put Braga ahead after just five minutes in the first leg in Portugal on 8 April, but Cucho Hernández's 61st-minute penalty gave the Spanish visitors a draw at Estádio Municipal de Braga.

Real Betis recovered from a first-leg away defeat in the round of 16 to navigate their way past Panathinaikos (0-1 a, 4-0 h) and reach their first Europa League quarter-final. They had earned 17 points in the league phase to finish fourth.

Braga had similarly recovered from a first-leg loss to win 4-2 on aggregate against Ferencváros in the round of 16 (0-2 a, 4-0 h). They had finished sixth in the league phase, also on 17 points, with a record of W5 D2 L1.

Last match

The first leg was also the teams' first meeting in UEFA competition.

Real Betis lost their first fixtures against Portuguese opponents – 1-2 both away and at home against Benfica in the 1982/83 UEFA Cup first round – but they are unbeaten in the five since (W3 D2), the first four against Vitória SC. Their record at home to Portuguese opponents is W1 D1 L1; they drew 2-2 at home in the first leg of last season's UEFA Conference League round of 16, in what was their most recent pairing with Vitória SC before triumphing 4-0 in Guimarães.

This is Braga's seventh fixture against a Spanish club. Prior to the first leg, their most recent encounters were a pair of group stage defeats by Real Madrid in the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League (1-2 h, 0-3 a).

The Portuguese side's last victory against Spanish opposition was a 4-3 triumph away to Sevilla in the second leg of the 2010/11 Champions League qualifying play-offs, which completed a 5-3 aggregate success – their only previous two-legged tie against a Spanish team.

That win at Sevilla is Braga's only success in Spain in three attempts (L2). Their last visit was that 0-3 defeat at Real Madrid in 2023.

Real Betis

Involved in European competition for the fifth successive season, Real Betis are contesting their maiden Europa League quarter-final, although they did twice reach the last eight of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup – in 1977/78 and 1997/98.

Their best European campaign, however, came last season when they reached the final of the Conference League, losing 1-4 to Chelsea in Wroclaw despite leading until the 65th minute.

Braga

Braga are competing in the quarter-finals of the Europa League for the fourth time, and the first since 2021/22 when they were defeated 2-3 on aggregate by Rangers (1-0 h, 1-3 a aet).

The only time they advanced beyond the last eight was when they defeated Dynamo Kyiv on away goals in 2010/11 (1-1 a, 0-0 h). They went on to reach their only European final, losing 0-1 to Porto in an all-Portuguese contest in Dublin.

Key stats

Real Betis are unbeaten in eight home European matches (W6 D2), winning the last four, and have scored two or more goals in all eight fixtures.

The Spanish side have lost only three of their last 18 games in UEFA competition (W9 D6).

Betis have won their last six two-legged European ties.

The Spanish side have won four and lost three of the seven European ties in which they drew the first leg. When the first-leg draw came away from home, their aggregate record is W2 L2.

Braga have won their last seven two-legged European ties.

The Portuguese side have lost only two of their last 18 games in UEFA competition (W12 D4).

Braga have played more matches in the Europa League era, Matchday 1 to final, than any other club; this is their 99th fixture in the competition proper.

Prior to their 2-0 defeat against Ferencvárosi TC in the first leg of the round of 16, Braga had been unbeaten away in this season's competition (W4 D3).

Braga have won six of their last seven European ties when the first leg finished level. Overall, they have won three of four when the home first leg ended in a draw, including three in a row since losing to Schalke in the 1997/98 UEFA Cup third round (0-0 h, 0-2 a).