A way-too-early Europa League 2025-26 preview!

With the 2024-25 season in the books and Spurs crowned Europa League champions, we're back to do a way-too-early preview of next season's competition! The upcoming campaign is much anticipated by us at Any Given Thursday thanks to a treasure trove of interesting contestants. There's a group of obvious contenders, including clubs with appearances in last year's Champions League - Aston Villa, Bologna, and Stuttgart (the latter two also lifted surprise trophies in the Coppa Italia and DFB Pokal, respectively) - and those intimately familiar with Europa - Roma, Betis, Freiburg, and Lyon. And there's a delightful accoutrement of underdog participants, including those qualified via the league - Celta Vigo, Rayo Vallecano, Utrecht, Samsunspor - and those who went on charming upset runs to win their domestic cups - Crystal Palace, Go Ahead Eagles, Aberdeen, Wolfsberger, Fredrikstad, and Sigma Olomouc. On the pod, we briefly touch on each of these clubs (and more!), offering just a taste of what we can expect on their Europa League journey, plus the significances of their achievements to date. Then we look ahead to the early qualifying rounds, predict who will advance, and debate who the leading contenders are to hoist the trophy next May. And yes, we do also address the crisis at Lyon. Cheers to us!