Europa League final: Freiburg vs Aston Villa facts
Thursday, May 14, 2026
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Beşiktaş Park in Istanbul is the venue for the UEFA Europa League final as first-time finalists Freiburg face former European champions Aston Villa.
Freiburg recovered from a 1-2 away defeat in the first leg of their semi-final with Braga to triumph 4-3 on aggregate after winning the return leg 3-1 in Germany – their 11th consecutive home victory in the competition. They had eliminated Celta 6-1 over two legs in the quarter-finals (3-0 h, 3-1 a) after recovering from losing the first leg of their round of 16 tie with Genk to win 5-2 on aggregate (0-1 a, 5-1 h). They finished seventh in the league phase on 17 points, with the record W5 D2 L1.
Aston Villa also recovered emphatically from a first-leg defeat in the semi-finals to overcome Nottingham Forest in their all-English tie (0-1 a, 4-0 h). They had recorded a 7-1 two-legged defeat of Bologna in the last eight (3-1 a, 4-0 h) and beat LOSC Lille 3-0 on aggregate in the round of 16 (1-0 a, 2-0 h). They won seven of their eight matches in the league phase (L1), finishing second on 21 points.
Last match
This is the first meeting between the teams.
All four of Freiburg's previous encounters against English opposition came against West Ham in the 2023/24 Europa League. Freiburg lost both of their group stage meetings – 1-2 in Germany and 0-2 in England – and were defeated 1-5 on aggregate in the round of 16, a 1-0 home win in the first leg followed by a 0-5 reverse in London.
Villa's record against German clubs is W4 L2. They are seeking a third straight win after beating Bayern München at home (1-0) and Leipzig away (3-2) in the league phase of last season's UEFA Champions League.
Villa’s only other knockout European final was also against a German club, having defeated Bayern 1-0 in the 1982 European Cup final in Rotterdam. They also faced Berliner FC Dynamo in the second round of that same competition, progressing on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw (2-1 a, 0-1 h).
This is Freiburg's seventh European campaign, including qualifying, all in the UEFA Cup/Europa League.
Prior to 2025/26, their best showings were consecutive round of 16 appearances in 2022/23 and 2023/24, losing 0-3 to Juventus (0-1 a, 0-2 h) and 1-5 to West Ham (1-0 h, 0-5 a) respectively.
This is Freiburg's first European final; they are the 11th German club to reach the UEFA Cup/Europa League final, a record – one more than England's ten.
Quarter-finalists in the Champions League last season, Villa are involved in European competition for a third straight campaign, having reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Conference League in 2023/24.
European Cup winners in 1982, Villa also triumphed in the UEFA Super Cup the same year.
The 2025/26 campaign represents Villa's first participation in the Europa League proper. They are the tenth different English club to reach the UEFA Cup/Europa League final.
Key stats
Freiburg are the third different German team to reach the Europa League final in the last five seasons. Eintracht Frankfurt lifted the trophy in 2021/22 and Leverkusen were beaten finalists in 2023/24.
Only two of Freiburg's last 36 European matches finished goalless.
The German side have lost only three of their 14 Europa League matches this season (W9 D2).
Julian Schuster has taken Freiburg to the Europa League final in his first-ever UEFA campaign as a coach and is aiming to be the first German coach to win the UEFA Cup/Europa League since Franz Beckenbauer with Bayern in 1996.
Villa have won 12 of their 14 Europa League matches this season (L2), three victories more than any other team; Freiburg are second with nine wins.
The Premier League side are the top scorers in the Europa League this season with 28 goals – three more than second-placed Freiburg.
The semi-final first‑leg defeat against Nottingham Forest ended Villa's nine‑match winning streak in the Europa League — the longest run in the club's European history and an English record in the Europa League proper, surpassing Chelsea's eight between 2013 and 2018.
Villa's 4-0 second-leg win against Forest was the biggest margin of victory in UEFA competition between two English clubs and their tenth successive home European win.
Unai Emery is the most successful coach in UEFA Cup/Europa League history with four titles – three with Sevilla (2014, 2015, 2016) and one with Villarreal (2021). He is one ahead of Giovanni Trapattoni's three victories and is aiming to be the first coach to win the competition with three different clubs.