Europa League draw: key dates and Man Utd’s path to the 2022/23 final
Manchester United will compete in the Europa League next season after their sixth place finish in the Premier League last campaign.
Manchester United will be one of 32 teams to discover who they will have in their Europa League group at the end of the month.
The Red Devils last competed in the competition during the 202/21 campaign after dropping out of the Champions League group stage.
They entered the Europa League in the round of 32, eventually progressing to the final against Villarreal.
It was a night to forget for United fans, however, with the club losing 11-10 on penalties to their Spanish opponents.
But the Red Devils will be hoping to repeat their 2017 success in the competition under new boss Erik ten Hag when it begins in September.
This year the group stage of the competition set to be completed by 3 November ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar later that month.
Here’s all the information you need to know ahead of the Europa League group stage draw…
When is the Europa League draw?
The Europa League group stage draw is set to take place on Friday 26 August in Istanbul, Turkey.
What time is the draw?
The draw is set to take place at 12pm BST, that’s 2pm local time.
Which teams have qualified so far?
United are among 16 clubs, at the time of writing, to have qualified for the competition so far. They are as follows:
Roma (ITA), Manchester United (ENG), Arsenal (ENG), Lazio (ITA), Braga (POR), Feyenoord (NED), Rennes (FRA), Real Sociedad (ESP),Real Betis (ESP), Union Berlin (GER), Freiburg (GER), Nantes (FRA), Monaco (FRA), Sturm Graz (AUT), Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL) and Midtjylland (DEN).
When will the group stage begin?
United will face each of their three group stage opponents twice with the following dates schedule:
Matchday 1: 8 September 2022
Matchday 2: 15 September 2022
Matchday 3: 6 October 2022
Matchday 4: 13 October 2022
Matchday 5: 27 October 2022
Matchday 6: 3 November 2022
When will the knock-out phase take place?
United, should they finish in the top two of their group, will begin the knock-out phase of the competition either 16 February, or 9 March, depending on their final group position.
If the Red Devils finish top of their group, they will progress directly to the round of 16 phase. However, if they end the group as runners-up, they will have to face one of eight Champions League third-place teams in the knockout play-off round.
Knockout round play-offs: 16 & 23 February
Round of 16: 9 & 16 March 2023
Quarter-finals: 13 & 20 April 2023
Semi-finals: 11 & 18 May 2023
Final: 31 May 2023
Where will the final be held?
The Europa League final is set to take place at the Puskas Arena on 31 May 2023 in Budapest, Hungary.