UEFA Europa League: Group Stage draw is out

The draw for the 2011/12 Europa League group stage was held yesterday at the Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo, Monaco. And the 48 teams who qualified for the group stages have been divided into 12 groups of four teams each.



The Europa League enters its third season with the second tier of European club competition looking to further enhance its standing. After Atletico Madrid being winners in 2010, last season FC Porto won the Europa League title against local Portuguese opposition in SC Braga.



This season the final of the 2011/12 UEFA Europa League will be played in the Romanian capital Bucharest in May 2012. A number of big clubs will play in the competition after missing out on the UEFA Champions League.



The toughest of all groups is Group I which includes Atletico Madrid (Spain), Udinese Calcio (Italy), Stade Rennes (France) and FC Sion (Switzerland), but FC Sion could be replaced by Scottish giants Celtic Glasgow then the Swiss side is said to have used an ineligible player. UEFA is investigating the case.





The Groups



Group A: Tottenham Hotspurs (England), Rubin Kazan (Russia), PAOK Saloniki (Greece), Shamrock Rovers (Ireland)



Group B: FC Copenhagen (Denmark), Standard Liege (Belgium), Hannover 96 (Germany), Worskla Poltawa (Ukraine)



Group C: PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Hapoel Tel Aviv (Israel), Rapid Bucharest (Romania), Legia Warsaw (Poland)



Group D: Sporting Clube de Lisbon (Portugal), Lazio Roma (Italy), FC Zurich (Switzerland), FC Vaslui (Romania)



Group E: Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine), Besiktas Istanbul (Turkey), Stoke City (England), Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel)



Group F: FC Paris Saint-Germain (France), Athletic Bilbao (Spain), Red Bull Salzburg (Austria), SK Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia)



Group G: AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands), Metalist Charkiw (Ukraine), FK Austria Wien (Austria), Malmö FF (Sweden)



Group H: SC Braga (Portugal), FC Brugge (Belgium), Birmingham City (England), NK Maribor (Slovenia)



Group I: Atletico Madrid (Spain), Udinese Calcio (Italy), Stade Rennes (France), FC Sion (Switzerland)



Group J: FC Schalke 04 (Germany), Steaua Bucharest (Romania), Maccabi Haifa (Israel), AEK Larnaka (Cyprus)



Group K: FC Twente Enschede (Netherlands), FC Fulham (England), Odense BK (Denmark), Wisla Krakau (Poland)



Group L: RSC Anderlecht (Belgium), AEK Athen (Greece), Locomotive Moscow (Russia), SK Sturm Graz (Austria)