2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League
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| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | Qualifying: 12 July – 31 August 2023 Competition proper: 20 September 2023 – 29 May 2024 |
| Teams | Competition proper: 32+8 Total: 135+43 (from 54 associations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 136 |
| Goals scored | 395 (2.9 per match) |
| Attendance | 2,172,006 (15,971 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Eran Zahavi (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 8 goals |
The 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League is the third season of the UEFA Europa Conference League, Europe's tertiary club football tournament organised by UEFA.
The final will be played at the Agia Sophia Stadium in Athens, Greece.[1] The winners of the tournament will automatically qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League league stage, unless they qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League through their league performance.
This edition will be the final season with the current format of 32 teams participating in the group stage, after UEFA announced that a brand-new format would be introduced for the following edition.[2] Due to the change, no clubs can be transferred from the Europa League group stage to the UEFA Europa Conference League under the Swiss format, and this edition's winners onwards will no longer be able to defend their title.[3] This will also be the final season under its current name as it is renamed to the UEFA Conference League from the 2024–25 season onwards. According to UEFA, the new denomination of the competition will enable further development as a stand-alone competition in their research amongst fans and commercial partners.[4][5]
As the title holders, West Ham United qualified for the 2023–24 UEFA Europa League. They are unable to defend their title after advancing to the Europa League knockout phase.
Association team allocation[edit]
A total of 178 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations (excluding Russia) are participating in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League. The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[6]
- Associations 1–5 each had one team qualify.
- Associations 6–16 (except Russia)[Note RUS] and 51–55 each had two teams qualify.
- Associations 17–50 (except Liechtenstein) each had three teams qualify.
- Liechtenstein had only one team that qualified as they organized only a domestic cup and no domestic league.
- Moreover, 18 teams eliminated from the 2023–24 UEFA Champions League and 25 teams eliminated from the 2023–24 UEFA Europa League were transferred to the Europa Conference League.
Association ranking[edit]
For the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League, the associations were allocated places according to their 2022 UEFA country coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2017–18 to 2021–22.[7]
Apart from the allocation based on the country coefficients, associations could have additional teams participating in the Europa Conference League, as noted below:
- (UCL) – Additional teams transferred from the UEFA Champions League
- (UEL) – Additional teams transferred from the UEFA Europa League
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|
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Distribution[edit]
The following is the access list for this season.[8]
| Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from previous round | Teams transferred from Champions League | Teams transferred from Europa League | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round (62 teams) |
| — | — | — | |
| Second qualifying round (106 teams) | Champions Path (16 teams) | — | — |
| — |
| Main Path (90 teams) |
|
| — | — | |
| Third qualifying round (64 teams) | Champions Path (10 teams) | — |
|
| — |
| Main Path (54 teams) |
|
| — | — | |
| Play-off round (44 teams) | Champions Path (10 teams) | — |
| — |
|
| Main Path (34 teams) |
|
| — |
| |
| Group stage (32 teams) | — |
| — |
| |
| Preliminary knockout round (16 teams) | — |
| — |
| |
| Knockout phase (16 teams) | — |
| — | — | |
Due to the suspension of Russia for the 2023–24 European season, the following changes to the access list were made:
- The cup winners of association 16 (Czech Republic) entered the Europa League third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round.
- The cup winners of associations 17 to 19 (Norway, Denmark and Croatia) entered the third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round.
- The cup winners of associations 30 to 39 (Slovakia, Slovenia, Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Luxembourg, Latvia and Kosovo) entered the second qualifying round instead of the first qualifying round.
Combining with the Champions League title holder (Manchester City) qualifying for the Champions League group stage via their domestic league, the following changes to the access list were made:
- Two of the Champions League first qualifying round losers received byes and entered the third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round.
Teams[edit]
The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
- CW: Domestic cup winners
- 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc.: League position of the previous season
- LC: League cup winners
- RW: Regular season winners
- PW: End-of-season Europa Conference League play-offs winners
- UCL: Transferred from the Champions League
- Q1: Losers from the first qualifying round
- PR: Losers from the preliminary round (F: final; SF: semi-finals)
- UEL: Transferred from the Europa League
- GS: Third-placed teams from the group stage
- PO: Losers from the play-off round
- CH/MP Q3: Losers from the third qualifying round (Champions/Main Path)
The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round were divided into Champions Path (CH) and Main Path (MP).
CC: 2023 UEFA club coefficients.[9]
One team not playing in a national top division took part in the competition: Vaduz (2nd tier).
Notes
- ^ Champions League (UCL Q1): Two of the Champions League first qualifying round losers were drawn to receive byes to the third qualifying round (Champions Path), as two fewer losers were transferred to the second qualifying round (Champions Path), due to Champions League group stage berths vacated following the UCL title holders qualifying via league position and the suspension of Russia from the 2023–24 European season.
- ^ Belarus (BLR): The winners (Shakhtyor Soligorsk) and runners-up (Energetik-BGU Minsk) of the 2022 Belarusian Premier League were both found guilty of match-fixing by the Football Federation of Belarus and were denied UEFA licenses. Fifth-placed Isloch Minsk Raion were also denied a UEFA license due to their involvement in another match-fixing scandal. The sixth- and seventh-placed teams, Minsk and Gomel did not apply for UEFA licences. As eighth-placed Torpedo-BelAZ Zhodino had already qualified for the second qualifying round as cup winners, the Europa Conference League berth reserved for the usual third-placed team was passed down to the highest-placed team who were granted a UEFA license, Neman Grodno, who finished ninth.[10][11][12]
- ^ Italy (ITA): Due to a violation of UEFA's financial regulations, the seventh-placed Juventus were excluded from UEFA men’s club competitions. Subsequently, Fiorentina, the eighth-placed team, took its place in the Europa Conference League.[13]
- ^ Kosovo (KOS): Prishtina would have qualified for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round as the winners of the 2022–23 Kosovar Cup, but failed to obtain a UEFA license. As a result, the berth reserved for the second qualifying round was given to the runner-up of the 2022–23 Football Superleague of Kosovo, Drita, who originally entered the first qualifying round, and the berth reserved for the first qualifying round was given to the fourth-placed team, Dukagjini.[14]
- ^ Liechtenstein (LIE): The seven teams affiliated with the Liechtenstein Football Association (LFV) all played in the Swiss football league system. The only competition organised by the LFV was the Liechtenstein Football Cup – the winners of which qualified for the UEFA Europa Conference League.
- ^ Russia (RUS): On 28 February 2022, Russian football clubs and national teams were suspended from FIFA and UEFA competitions due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[15] The tables reflected Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA competitions.[16]
- ^ San Marino (SMR): Cup winners Virtus were found guilty of match-fixing and denied a UEFA license. The third-placed team of the league, La Fiorita, were selected as their replacement by the San Marino Football Federation.[17]
- ^ Ukraine (UKR): The 2022–23 Ukrainian Cup was abandoned due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. The berths reserved for the third and fourth-placed teams in the league were transferred to the fourth and fifth-placed teams in the league respectively.
Schedule[edit]
The schedule of the competition is as follows.[18][19][20] Matches are scheduled for Thursdays apart from the final, which takes place on a Wednesday, though exceptionally can take place on Tuesdays or Wednesdays due to scheduling conflicts.
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | First qualifying round | 20 June 2023 | 13 July 2023 | 20 July 2023 |
| Second qualifying round | 21 June 2023 | 27 July 2023 | 3 August 2023 | |
| Third qualifying round | 24 July 2023 | 10 August 2023 | 17 August 2023 | |
| Play-offs | Play-off round | 7 August 2023 | 24 August 2023 | 31 August 2023 |
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 1 September 2023 | 21 September 2023 | |
| Matchday 2 | 5 October 2023 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 26 October 2023 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 9 November 2023 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 30 November 2023 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 14 December 2023 | |||
| Knockout phase | Knockout round play-offs | 18 December 2023 | 15 February 2024 | 22 February 2024 |
| Round of 16 | 23 February 2024 | 7 March 2024 | 14 March 2024 | |
| Quarter-finals | 15 March 2024 | 11 April 2024 | 18 April 2024 | |
| Semi-finals | 2 May 2024 | 9 May 2024 | ||
| Final | 29 May 2024 at Agia Sophia Stadium, Athens | |||
Qualifying rounds[edit]
First qualifying round[edit]
The draw for the first qualifying round was made on 20 June 2023. The first legs were played on 12 and 13 July, and the second legs were played on 18 and 20 July 2023.
The winners of the ties advanced to the Main Path second qualifying round. The losers were eliminated from European competitions for the season.
Second qualifying round[edit]
The draw for the second qualifying round was made on 21 June 2023. The first legs were played on 25, 26 and 27 July, and the second legs were played on 1, 2 and 3 August 2023.
The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round of their respective path. The losers were eliminated from European competitions for the season.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lincoln Red Imps  | Bye | N/A | — | — |
Flora  | Bye | N/A | — | — |
Tre Penne  | 0–10 |  Valmiera | 0–3 | 0–7 |
Ferencváros  | 6–0 |  Shamrock Rovers | 4–0 | 2–0 |
The New Saints  | 3–4 |  Swift Hesperange | 1–1 | 2–3 |
Atlètic Club d'Escaldes  | 1–5 |  Partizani | 0–1 | 1–4 |
Ħamrun Spartans  | 3–1 |  Dinamo Tbilisi | 2–1 | 1–0 |
Farul Constanța  | 6–4 |  Urartu | 3–2 | 3–2 |
Struga  | 5–3 |  Budućnost Podgorica | 1–0 | 4–3 |
Ballkani  | 7–1 |  Larne | 3–0 | 4–1 |
Notes
Third qualifying round[edit]
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 24 July 2023. The first legs were played on 9 and 10 August, and the second legs were played on 16 and 17 August 2023.
The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round of their respective path. The losers were eliminated from European competitions for the season.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ħamrun Spartans | 2–8 | Ferencváros | 1–6 | 1–2 |
| Farul Constanța | 5–0 | Flora | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Valmiera | 1–3 | Partizani | 1–2 | 0–1 |
| Ballkani | 5–1 | Lincoln Red Imps | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| Struga | 4–3 | Swift Hesperange | 3–1 | 1–2 |
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
AEK Larnaca  | 1–2 |  Maccabi Tel Aviv | 1–1 | 0–1 |
Sabah  | 2–2 (4–5 p) |  Partizan | 2–0 | 0–2 (a.e.t.) |
| Sepsi OSK | 2–1 |  Aktobe | 1–1 | 1–0 |
Rapid Wien  | 5–0 | Debrecen | 0–0 | 5–0 |
Hajduk Split  | 0–3 |  PAOK | 0–0 | 0–3 |
| FC Santa Coloma | 0–3 |  AZ | 0–1 | 0–2 |
Celje  | 5–1 |  Neman Grodno | 1–0 | 4–1 |
| Neftçi | 2–5[A] |  Beşiktaş | 1–3 | 1–2 |
| Omonia | 2–5 |  Midtjylland | 1–0 | 1–5 |
| Aris | 2–2 (5–6 p) |  Dynamo Kyiv | 1–0 | 1–2 (a.e.t.) |
Legia Warsaw  | 6–5 | Austria Wien | 1–2 | 5–3 |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 1–2 |  Levski Sofia | 0–0 | 1–2 |
Hibernian  | 5–3 |  Luzern | 3–1 | 2–2 |
Viktoria Plzeň  | 6–0 | Gżira United | 4–0 | 2–0 |
Arouca  | 3–4 |  Brann | 2–1 | 1–3 |
Gent  | 6–2 | Pogoń Szczecin | 5–0 | 1–2 |
| Adana Demirspor | 7–4 | Osijek | 5–1 | 2–3 |
B36 Tórshavn  | 1–5 | Rijeka | 1–3 | 0–2 |
| Twente | 5–0 | Riga | 2–0 | 3–0 |
| Rosenborg | 3–4 | Heart of Midlothian | 2–1 | 1–3 |
| Fenerbahçe | 6–1 | Maribor | 3–1 | 3–0 |
| Club Brugge | 10–2 |  KA | 5–1 | 5–1 |
| Dila Gori | 0–3 | APOEL | 0–2 | 0–1 |
| Lech Poznań | 3–4 |  Spartak Trnava | 2–1 | 1–3 |
| FCSB | 0–2 | Nordsjælland | 0–0 | 0–2 |
| Tobol | 1–1 (6–5 p) | Derry City | 1–0 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Bodø/Glimt | 6–0 | Pyunik | 3–0 | 3–0 |
- ^ Order of legs reversed after original draw.
Play-off round[edit]
The draw for the play-off round was held on 7 August 2023. The first legs were played on 23 and 24 August, and the second legs were played on 31 August 2023.
The winners of the ties advanced to the group stage. The losers were eliminated from European competitions for the season.
In this season, the video assistant referee (VAR) was used from this stage.[21]
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballkani | 4–2 | BATE Borisov | 4–1 | 0–1 |
Žalgiris  | 0–7 | Ferencváros | 0–4 | 0–3 |
| Struga | 0–2 | Breiðablik | 0–1 | 0–1 |
| Farul Constanța | 2–3 |  HJK | 2–1 | 0–2 |
| Astana | 2–1 | Partizani | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Levski Sofia | 1–3 |  Eintracht Frankfurt | 1–1 | 0–2 |
| Gent | 4–1[A] | APOEL | 2–0 | 2–1 |
| Spartak Trnava | 3–2 | Dnipro-1 | 1–1 | 2–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Sepsi OSK | 4–5 | Bodø/Glimt | 2–2 | 2–3 (a.e.t.) |
| Tobol | 1–5 | Viktoria Plzeň | 1–2 | 0–3 |
| Hibernian | 0–8 |  Aston Villa | 0–5 | 0–3 |
| Midtjylland | 4–4 (5–6 p) | Legia Warsaw | 3–3 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) |
Lille  | 3–2 | Rijeka | 2–1 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Genk | 2–2 (5–4 p) | Adana Demirspor | 2–1 | 0–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Fenerbahçe | 6–1 | Twente | 5–1 | 1–0 |
| Dynamo Kyiv | 2–4 | Beşiktaş | 2–3 | 0–1 |
| AZ | 4–4 (6–5 p) | Brann | 1–1 | 3–3 (a.e.t.) |
| Rapid Wien | 1–2 |  Fiorentina | 1–0 | 0–2 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 1–6 | PAOK | 1–2 | 0–4 |
| Nordsjælland | 6–0 | Partizan | 5–0 | 1–0 |
Osasuna  | 3–4 | Club Brugge | 1–2 | 2–2 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 5–2 | Celje | 4–1 | 1–1 |
- ^ Order of legs reversed after original draw.
