On Wednesday, May 20, the winner of the second most prestigious European tournament—the Europa League—will be determined, as debutant German side Freiburg faces England's Aston Villa, led by Unai Emery, who knows how to win this tournament. UNN reports on where to watch the match, who the bookmakers' favorite is, and what you need to know before the game.
The Match
In the decisive match of the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League at the Beşiktaş Park stadium in the Turkish capital, Istanbul, former European Cup (Champions League) winners Aston Villa will face Freiburg, who have never previously participated in a European final.
The starting whistle at 22:00 will be blown by the match's head referee, François Letexier.
This season, François has officiated most of his matches in the French Ligue 1, and he also has eight Champions League matches to his credit. Letexier's assistants in the Europa League final will be his compatriots Cyril Mugnier and Mehdi Rahmouni. The fourth official is Alejandro Hernández from Spain. The VAR system will be overseen by French referee Jérôme Brisard.
Path to the Final
In the Europa League group stage, Aston Villa finished second in the table with 21 points from seven wins and one loss, trailing only the French side Lyon—featuring Ukrainian forward Roman Yaremchuk—on goal difference.
Freiburg took seventh place. The Germans recorded five wins, two draws, and one loss during the group stage.
Given that the teams secured high positions in the group stage, both began their path to the final from the Round of 16.
In the Round of 16, Freiburg defeated Belgian side Genk (1-0 loss, 5-1 win); in the quarterfinals, they secured two victories over Spain's Celta Vigo (3-0 and 3-1); and in the semifinals, they beat Portugal's Braga (2-1 loss, 3-1 win).
Aston Villa beat French side Lille in the Round of 16 (1-0 and 2-1), overcame Italy's Bologna in the quarterfinals (3-1 and 4-0), and defeated their compatriots Nottingham Forest in the semifinals (1-0 loss and 4-0 win).
What You Need to Know
Freiburg has never won a major trophy, and its best result in the Europa League prior to this season was reaching the Round of 16 in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 seasons. Julian Schuster's team plays spectacular football, with leading roles played by top scorer Vincenzo Grifo, goalkeeper Noah Atubolu, and the 20-year-old Swiss national team defensive midfielder Johan Manzambi.
As for Villa, the Birmingham side is aiming for its first trophy in 30 years. In 1982, the English side defeated Bayern Munich 1-0 in the European Cup final (the predecessor to the Champions League).
Additionally, Aston Villa reached the Conference League semifinals in the 2023/24 season, stopped at the quarterfinals of the last Champions League campaign after losing to PSG, and has now broken through to the Europa League final. Head coach Unai Emery has won the Europa League four times—three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal. He is the most decorated coach in the tournament's history.
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The teams have never met before. In total, Freiburg has played against English teams 4 times, securing 1 victory. The most recent occasion was against England's West Ham in the Conference League Round of 16, where the Germans lost 5-1 on aggregate.
Where to Watch, Bookmakers' Favorite
The live broadcast of the final for Ukrainian fans will be available on the "Football 1" channel of the Megogo media service.
Bookmakers favor the English club. The odds for an Aston Villa victory are 1.61, for a draw 3.94, and for a German victory 5.40.
The chances of the Bundesliga representative lifting the trophy, including potential extra time and a penalty shootout, are rated at 3.20, while the Premier League club is at 1.36.