Top teams galore: "Supercomputer" predicts the latest Europa League favorites after the round of 16 is complete, with all teams confirmed.
On 27 Feb 2026 GMT+7, Opta, a leading football statistics expert, revealed its latest prediction for the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League champion. After the playoff round concluded, eight more teams advanced to complete the round of 16 as follows.
1. Olympique Lyon
2. Aston Villa
3. Midtjylland
4. Real Betis
5. FC Porto
6. Braga
7. Freiburg
8. Roma
9. Genk
10. Bologna
11. Stuttgart
12. Ferencváros
13. Nottingham Forest
14. Celta Vigo
15. Lille
16. Panathinaikos
Opta's supercomputer predicts that Aston Villa, a prominent English Premier League team, is the top favorite to win this Europa League season. They finished second in the league phase with 21 points, tied with Olympique Lyon, who topped the group, but Villa had a lower goal difference (Lyon +13, Villa +8).
Roma from Italy's Serie A ranks second favorite. They are regulars in the Europa League and won the UEFA Conference League in the 2021-22 season. Meanwhile, Lyon is predicted as the third favorite.
Nottingham Forest, another Premier League club, is ranked fifth favorite, while Real Betis, home to former Manchester United winger Anthony, is sixth in the title contention.
1st Favorite: Aston Villa 37.26%
2nd Favorite: Roma 9.11%
3rd Favorite: Olympique Lyon 8.41%
4th Favorite: Porto 8.07%
5th Favorite: Nottingham Forest 7.03%
6th Favorite: Real Betis 6.24%
7th Favorite: Midtjylland 4.68%
8th Favorite: Stuttgart 4.37%