Why are there Europa League matches on Wednesday?
BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team explains why there are nine Europa League matches taking place on Wednesday night
The 2026-27 Europa League season kicks off with an unusual Wednesday night fixture schedule, a day ahead of the competition's normal Thursday evening slot. Nine out of 18 league phase matches are set for Wednesday, with teams like Sunderland, AC Milan, Benfica, Lyon, Omonia, Celta Vigo, Ararat-Armenia, Sparta Prague, Olympiakos, Jagiellonia Bialystok, Anderlecht, Bayer Leverkusen, Celje, and others battling it out.
This deviation from the usual Thursday schedule is due to fixture clashes with other European competitions in the same region. The Champions League also has a separate week dedicated to its matches, typically spanning Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The Conference League's designated week occurs in December. This restructured league phase system was implemented starting in the 2024-25 season, building upon previous changes to the competition's format.
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