Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest, Porto, Bologna, Real Betis, Celta Vigo, SC Freiburg, and Braga are the eight teams left in this year’s Europa League after they all did well in the return leg of their Round of 16 ties on Thursday.
With four of the eight teams coming from the English and Spanish top-flight, there’s a bigger chance for more Premier League and La Liga clubs to secure places in Europe next term due to a bump in their UEFA coefficients. The Primeira Liga is also well represented because of Braga and Porto. On the other hand, the same can’t be said for the Bundesliga and Serie A, with only one team each in the final eight.
Still, the Europa League 2026 odds do not have a clear favourite, though Aston Villa may have the slight edge, considering their performance in the competition thus far.
Anyway, here are some of the notable Europa League 2026 updates, courtesy of SBOTOP.
Nottingham Forest stage successful comeback
Nottingham Forest secured their spot in the Europa League quarter-finals with a penalty shootout victory over Midtjylland yesterday, handing Vitor Pereira only his second win as their head coach.
After losing 1-0 in the opening leg and their goalless draw against Fulham, Nottingham Forest made wholesale changes to the starting XI in the return leg, which helped set the tone against their Danish counterparts. Ryan Yates fired a low strike from 20 yards into the corner to put the Tricky Trees up by two after Nicolas Dominguez scored a header before halftime.
Martin Erlic forced extra time by pulling one back for Midtjylland. However, Nottingham Forest eventually won the penalty shootout, as Morgan Gibbs-White, Ibrahim Sangare, and Neco Williams scored their spot-kicks, while substitutes Aral Simsir and Edward Chilufya missed theirs.
Yates deserved the Man of the Match honours for his productive shift in the middle of the park and his second goal during the second half. The 28-year-old midfielder would have had two goals if his first attempt hadn’t hit the crossbar.
The last time Nottingham Forest came into the second leg trailing in a European tie and eventually advanced to the next round was against Berliner FC Dynamo during the 1979-80 European Cup. The Tricky Trees went all the way that year to win the competition.
Aston Villa progress to the next round with ease
After Ollie Watkins drew first blood to give Aston Villa the 1-0 first-leg victory, skipper John McGinn and Leon Bailey scored two more unanswered goals to propel the team into the Europa League quarter-finals, eliminating Lille.
Tammy Abraham and Amadou Onana forced goalkeeper Berke Ozer into saves before McGinn struck in the second half, finishing in transition after a Jadon Sancho teed him up, following a clever long ball by Emi Martinez. Sancho then hit the post before Bailey tapped the ball in during the 86th minute for his first Aston Villa goal in a year to put the game beyond doubt.
Martinez received praise from the Villa Park crowd after his vital contribution, which settled their nerves after a tepid opening half. It also helped Aston Villa that Lille looked passive throughout the night, notching only five shots.
This victory comes amid their lacklustre form in the Premier League, with only two victories from their last 10. As a result, their Top 4 spot has come under threat, with Liverpool and Chelsea lurking. So, this win could hopefully give them the spark they need to finish their 2025-26 campaign strong.
Real Betis win the battle of green
Similar to Nottingham Forest, Real Betis overturned their first-leg deficit against Panathinaikos to reach the Europa League quarter-finals. But they didn’t need extra time (and the penalty shootout) to stage the successful comeback.
Los Verdiblancos were in complete control during their demolition job against their Greek counterparts en route to securing their first-ever quarter-finals appearance in the competition. They’ll face Braga in the next round.
Aitor Ruibal levelled the aggregate score after eight minutes before Sofyan Amrabat made it 2-0 before halftime with his long-range rocket. Ruibal teed up Cucho Hernandez for their third goal before Antony put the final nail in the coffin with a smart finish in off the post. Marc Roca and Antony almost made it 6-0 late with their forays in the final third, but goalkeeper Alban Lafont thwarted their chances with his timely rushes.
More than the victory, the bigger picture for Real Betis is Amrabat’s long-awaited return after being out since November due to a serious ankle injury. Alongside him, fellow Moroccan Abde Ezzalzouli also exhibited his attacking influence.
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