How to watch the 2023/24 UEFA Europa League last 16 draw
- The draw for the next Europa League knockout stage takes place this week
- Premier League clubs Liverpool, West Ham and Brighton are involved
- Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen will also be in the hat
With the Europa League knockout play-off round done and dusted, attention has turned to the last 16 draw in Nyon, Switzerland.
Liverpool, Brighton and West Ham United are the three Premier League sides in the hat, though many have suggested the Reds' priorities may lie elsewhere as they bid to win a second domestic title in four years.
Jurgen Klopp was keen to debunk that theory, shrugging: "Unfortunately, my career is not like this where I can choose, to be honest. I have to take what I get. When we play the competition it's the most important competition on the planet. Easy as that."
By that logic, Klopp will be a keen spectator when the Europa League's round of 16 draw gets underway. Here's everything you need to know.
How does the 2023/24 Europa League round of 16 draw work?
UEFA have done their best to avoid complicating the draw - although, it would be far too straightforward to simply allow any names to be plucked out of the bowl at random.
The eight seeded teams won their Europa League group. These victors will be drawn against the clubs that emerge from the competition's knockout round play-offs.
These two-legged ties taking place in the second half of February pit the runners-up from each Europa League group against the clubs that finished third in the Champions League equivalent.
One final caveat ensures that no two teams from the same association can be drawn against one another.
When is the 2023/24 Europa League round of 16 draw?
The draw for the round of 16 will take place after the conclusion of the knockout round play-offs. One day after the decisive second legs, the great and good of European football descends upon Nyon for the ceremony on Friday 23 February at 11:00 GMT.
The House of European Football, UEFA's Swiss headquarters on the banks of Lake Geneva, will stage the latest flurry of ball plucking.
How to watch the 2023/24 Europa League round of 16 draw on TV and live stream
As ever, UEFA will stream the spellbinding spectacle of an underemployed ex-footballer struggling to uncap the containers holding each club's name on their official website.
UK viewers can also tune in on TNT Sports 2 which begins its broadcast at 11:00 GMT.
Confirmed teams for the 2023/24 Europa League round of 16 draw
Qualified team | Nation | Method of qualification |
|---|---|---|
West Ham | England | Group A winners |
Brighton | England | Group B winner |
Rangers | Scotland | Group C winner |
Atalanta | Italy | Group D winner |
Liverpool | England | Group E winner |
Villarreal | Spain | Group F winner |
Slavia Prague | Czech Republic | Group G winner |
Bayer Leverkusen | Germany | Group H winner |
Qarabag | Azerbaijan | Knockout play-off winner |
AC Milan | Italy | Knockout play-off winner |
Freiburg | Germany | Knockout play-off winner |
Benfica | Portugal | Knockout play-off winner |
Marseille | France | Knockout play-off winner |
Roma | Italy | Knockout play-off winner |
Sparta Prague | Czech Republic | Knockout play-off winner |
Sporting CP | Portugal | Knockout play-off winner |
When do the 2023/24 Europa League round of 16 games take place?
The first legs of this year's Europa League last-16 fixtures get underway on Thursday 7 March, affording club analysts less than two weeks to scout their imminent opponents. The final half of these ties take place just a week later, on Thursday 14 March.
This scheduling doesn't do any favours for Liverpool in particular. The Reds host reigning Premier League champions Manchester City before travelling to Everton's Goodison Park in a Merseyside derby on either side of their continental second leg. Klopp's professed lack of competition preference will be put to the test during this sequence.
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