With the defeat of PSG in the Champions League against Bayern Munich, Nice is the last French representative in Europe. The Niçois will play this Thursday, March 9 the round of 16 first leg of the Europa League Conference.
France has only one club left in its Championship in European competitions and it isOGC Nice. The Niçois will play in the round of 16 of the Europa League Conference their ticket for the quarter-finals against Sheriff Tiraspol. Described by the Moldovans as “favourites” in this cup, the Aiglons seem to have their heads on their shoulders and are aware of their status. “It’s very flattering to be the favorite against a club that has played in the Champions League”, commented the one who has transcended the Gym, Didier Digard in a press conference. Undefeated since his arrival, the players are also displaying great confidence, such as captain Dante who wanted to be ambitious: “we have big goals and we think we’ll go all the way”.
Later, four matches will be played on the lawns of Europe. FC Basel will host Slovan Bratislava, Gent will face Basaksehir, Lech Poznan will challenge Djugardens and Fiorentina will host Sivasspor. Earlier it is Anderlecht-Villarreal and Larnaca-West Ham who will host the start of this evening at 6:45 p.m.
Lazio and AS Roma share the Stadio Olimpico. The match between Lazio and AZ Alkmaar has been brought forward to Tuesday March 7, 2023. The two Italian clubs in the draw have been designated as the home team in the first leg. AS Roma being in the running in the Europa League, it was impossible to play the two games simultaneously because the competition is played at the same time, namely on Thursday evening. Lazio, which therefore received the Dutch club, lost 2 to 1 and will leave for the Netherlands on an unfavorable waiver. The return will be made on Thursday of next week (March 16).
With the small exception of Lazio, the other seven games will be played this Thursday, March 9 with three posters at 6:45 p.m. and four at 9 p.m. Nice is scheduled for the first slot.
- Larnaca-West Ham: 6:45 p.m.
- Anderlecht-Villarreal: 6:45 p.m.
- Sheriff Tiraspol – OGC Nice: 6:45 p.m.
- Fiorentina-Sivasspor: 9 p.m.
- Lech Poznan – Djugardens: 9 p.m.
- FC Basel – Slovan Bratislava: 9 p.m.
- Gent – Basaksehir: 9 p.m.
- Lazio – AZ Alkmaar: 1-2 (match played on Tuesday March 7)
Canal + Football owns the majority of the rights to this competition. The only French team still in Europe, W9 will broadcast the match between Nice and Sheriff Tiraspol.
The group stage of the Europa League Football Conference is played from Thursday September 8, 2022 to Thursday November 3, 2022 while the knockout stage will be played from Thursday February 16, 2023 to Thursday May 18, 2023. As for the final, it is scheduled for June 7, 2023 at the Eden Arena in Prague (Czech Republic). The calendar was then drawn up as follows by UEFA:
- Direct elimination
- Knockout stage play-offs: February 16 and 23, 2023
- Round of 16: March 9 and 16, 2023
- Quarter-finals: April 13 and 20, 2023
- Semi-finals: May 11 and 18, 2023
- Final: June 7, 2023 at the Eden Arena in Prague (Czech Republic)
As last season, UEFA has awarded the French TV rights for the 2022/2023 Europa League Conference to RMC Sport, M6 And Canal+ which will ensure the broadcast until the end of the 2023/2024 season. Canal + will co-broadcast with M6 the poster for each Thursday and RMC Sport offers all the remaining matches. M6 will broadcast the final scheduled for June 7, 2023 in clear. During the 2024-2027 period, this is Canal + who bought the broadcasting rights.
The Europa League Conference 2021-2022 is the new European competition launched by UEFA and therefore the third international competition for European clubs after the Champions League and the Europa League. Its first edition was launched for the 2021-2022 season. It groups European teams according to their results in the league or in the national cup. The winner of the Europa League Conference qualifies for the Europa League the following year.
184 teams play in the competition throughout the season, including at least one from each of UEFA’s 55 member associations and 46 from the UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League according to the UEFA website. ‘. The group stage consists of:
- 17 teams from the UEFA Europa Conference League main path
- 5 teams from the UEFA Europa Conference League Champions Path*
- 10 teams eliminated in the UEFA Europa League play-offs
A group phase (eight groups of four) is therefore organized before a knockout phase (round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final). The eight group winners qualify for the round of 16. A play-off is played between the eight runners-up and the teams that finish third in their UEFA Europa League group.