The UEFA Europa League is down to the last 16 and today the clubs will find out their next step in a journey they hope ends in glory in Warsaw on 27 May.
But lifting the famous old trophy is not the only incentive clubs have this season. One new and well-documented element to this year's competition is that the winners will qualify for the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League.
This has some ramifications for clubs' entry into the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, and at which stage of the competition.
UEFA.com runs through the fundamental points and possible scenarios which could affect clubs' European football participation next term.
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Sevilla celebrate their 2014 UEFA Europa League win
• The UEFA Champions League winners will be entered in the UEFA Champions League group stage as normal.
• The UEFA Europa League winners will be entered in the UEFA Champions League (at a minimum level of the play-offs).
• The UEFA Europa League winners will be elevated into the group stage if the UEFA Champions League winners qualify directly for the UEFA Champions League group stage via their domestic league programme – something which has happened every year since the turn of the century bar
Maximum of five
• No more than five clubs can enter the UEFA Champions League from one national association (this is an increase on the previous maximum of four).
How it impacts associations' allocations
• It is now theoretically possible for a country with three UEFA Champions League places (i.e. Italy, Portugal or France) to up this number to five, a country with two places (e.g. Netherlands, Turkey or Czech Republic) to increase to four, or a country with one place (e.g. Denmark, Scotland or Romania) to up it to three. This can only happen if the association in question has two clubs who win both major European club competitions but that also do not qualify via their own league.*
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The National Stadium in Warsaw will stage this season's final
– The club that won the UEFA Champions League will go straight into the group stage
– The UEFA Europa League winners will go into the UEFA Champions League play-offs
– The club that had qualified for a UEFA Champions League play-off spot via their domestic league competition (i.e. finished fourth) will transfer into the UEFA Europa League
What else?
Other changes in the qualification for the UEFA Europa League, including an increased number of teams being automatically placed in the group stage, can be seen
*Please note that all countries mentioned are based on the 2015/16 access list – the associations' allocation of places may change in subsequent seasons depending on their
Source: http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/newsid=2215121.html
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