The final stretch of the UEFA Europa League is underway. With the final match set to take place in the Beşiktaş Stadium in Istanbul on the 20th May 2026, only one team can ultimately be crowned champion.
Could it be one of the Premier League teams, Aston Villa or Nottingham Forest? Perhaps it will be one of the La Liga teams, such as Real Betis or Celta Vigo, who have historically been the best performers in the competition. Or could Portuguese giants Porto reclaim their former glory and claim their first European trophy since 2011?
Understanding each team’s chances is also a crucial part of the process for sports bettors who are trying to make as well-informed predictions as possible. Analysing past results can help you make predictions about how well a certain team could perform, though you can never guarantee your bet will win. This is in contrast to other games of chance where the outcome is completely random from the get-go. This is important to bear in mind should you encounter online iGaming bonuses around high-profile events like these, as YellowBet’s midweek jackpot bonus, for example, can involve some degree of human factor and pattern recognition when it involves sports betting, while casino bonuses often simply boil down to a series of 1s and 0s and are thus completely impossible to predict.
So, take a look at this in-depth guide on the competition, where we’ll explore the favourites to win the UEFA Europa League, and give you more insight into how the final could potentially play out in Istanbul.
Could a Premier League Team Win the Competition?
As of April 2026, Aston Villa are currently favourites to win the UEFA Europa League. A large part of this is due to manager Unai Emery, who has won a total of five Europa League trophies before (with Sevilla and Villarreal), more than any other manager.
Emery is certainly a specialist in this competition, and since he joined the Birmingham side back in October 2022, Aston Villa have gone from relegation candidates to regular European competitors.
They have a very strong squad with standout players such as Olli Watkins, John McGinn and World Cup winner Emiliano Martínez. This talent across the pitch saw them dispatch Bologna 3-1 in the first leg of the quarter-final, putting them in a strong position to lift the trophy.
The other Premier League side in the competition is Nottingham Forest, who, despite finishing 7th place last season, are in the competition due to Crystal Palace being demoted to the Conference League because of an alleged breach of regulations.
Although they have gone through a poor spell in the Premier League, as well as a total of four different managers since the start of the season, Forrest have been performing well in Europe. They achieved a well-fought draw against Porto, and are now fairly evenly matched going into the second leg of the quarter-finals.
Analysing Other Teams’ Chances
Real Betis are the second favourites for the competition. They made it to the final of the UEFA Conference League last season, ultimately losing to Chelsea 4-1. They have been performing very strongly in the UEFA Europa League this season, currently going into a quarter-final second leg with Braga after drawing 1-1.
While Bundesliga team SC Freiburg are currently 8th in the league, they defeated Celta Vigo 3-0 in the first leg of the quarter-final, putting them in a strong position for the rest of the campaign.
View more free tips for 23-04-2026
Samsunspor
Trabzonspor
G.A. Eagles
AZ Alkmaar
Levante
Sevilla
Besiktas
Alanyaspor
Casa Pia
Braga
Rayo Vallecano
Espanyol
St. Truiden
Anderlecht
Stuttgart
Freiburg
PSV
Zwolle
Oviedo
Villarreal
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