Barcelona fell short of expectations in the UEFA Champions League this season, finishing third in their group behind Bayern Munich and Inter Milan, thus eliminated from the knockout stage of that competition.
But things won't get any easier for Barcelona in the Europa League, as the club dropped down to the second-tier competition by virtue of finishing third in their Champions League group.
The draw for the knockout playoffs paired them with Manchester United, who they recorded a 2-2 draw against in the first leg, another club that many expect to be playing in the Champions League rather than the Europa League.
If Xavi Hernandez's side can get past the Red Devils, they will earn a spot in the Round of 16 of the competition where another set of opponents will await in the last 16 draw on February 24.
MORE: Europa League knockout playoffs draw results
Barcelona Europa League knockout playoffs draw
Barcelona were drawn against Manchester United in the Europa League knockout playoff draw where they drew 2-2 at Camp Nou.
Because Barcelona finished third in their Champions League group, they dropped to the Europa League and will need to progress through the knockout playoff round to reach the competition's Round of 16.
Barcelona were not able to be drawn against other Spanish clubs in either the knockout playoff round or the Round of 16. Should they advance past Manchester United, they will face one of the other six clubs not named Real Betis and Real Sociedad.
🚨🚨🚨 Our Europa League opponents: Manchester United! pic.twitter.com/pMts6WaHPL
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) November 7, 2022
Barcelona Europa League knockout playoffs schedule
As an unseeded team, Barcelona played the first leg of their Europa League knockout playoff tie at home, with the return leg at Old Trafford.
The first leg of matches took place on Thursday, February 16, 2023. The second leg at Old Trafford will take place the following week on February 23.
- 1st Leg: Thurs, Feb. 16 (17:45 BST / 12:45 ET)
- 2nd Leg: Thurs, Feb. 23 (20:00 BST / 15:00 ET)
Due to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in November 2022, UEFA's cup competitions are taking a bigger break than usual between the group stages and knockout rounds.
MORE: How much money do Champions League teams win?
When is the Europa League Round of 16 draw?
Barcelona will hope to be among the eight teams that emerge from the knockout playoffs to join the eight Europa League group winners in the competition's Round of 16.
That Europa League Round of 16 draw will take place the day after the conclusion of the knockout playoffs round: Friday, February 24, 2023 at 13:00 CET / 12:00 GMT / 07:00 ET.
For purposes of this Round of 16 draw, the Europa League group winners will be considered the seeded teams. The qualifiers from the knockout round playoffs will form the unseeded group.
The only restriction attached to the Round of 16 draw is that teams from the same country cannot be drawn together. That restriction disappears in the Europa League quarterfinal and semifinal draws which both take place on March 17, 2023.
| Pot 1 Europa League Group Winners | Pot 2 Europa Playoff Round Teams |
|---|---|
| Arsenal (ENG) | TBD |
| Fenerbahce (TUR) | TBD |
| Ferencvaros (HUN) | TBD |
| Feyenoord (NED) | TBD |
| Freiburg (GER) | TBD |
| Real Betis (SPA) | TBD |
| Real Sociedad (SPA) | TBD |
| Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL) | TBD |
Barcelona Europa League history
Barcelona had never played in the current iteration of the Europa League before last season, when they dropped from the Champions League for the first time ever. The tournament was previously called the UEFA Cup and the Fairs Cup.
In the 2021/22 competition, they ousted Napoli in the knockout playoff round and downed Galatasaray in the Round of 16 before falling to eventual champions Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarterfinals (4-3 on aggregate).
They have now entered the Europa League in the same manner, doing so two seasons in a row after never having done so previously.
Barcelona odds to win Europa League 2022/23
Despite their spotty results this season in European play, Barcelona remain one of the top sides to win the Europa League thanks to dominant domestic success and their stature as one of the top clubs in Europe.
Arsenal are the top team in the competition according to bookmakers. Fellow English club Manchester United are considered top contenders too.
Barcelona sees two Spanish clubs amongst the top contenders as well, with Real Betis and Real Sociedad appearing. Italian side Juventus is up there as well, alongside fellow Serie A side Roma.
Europa League winner odds for 2022/23
| BetMGM (USA) | Sports Interaction (Canada) | SkyBet (UK) | Ladbrokes (Australia) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | +400 | 3.86 | 7/2 | 5.00 |
| Barcelona | +400 | 4.02 | 9/2 | 5.50 |
| Man United | +600 | 6.36 | 7/1 | 7.00 |
| Real Betis | +1000 | 9.00 | 14/1 | 15 |
| Juventus | +1200 | 11.58 | 14/1 | 15 |
| AS Roma | +1400 | 12.00 | 20/1 | 19 |
| Ajax | +1600 | 11.58 | 12/1 | 17 |
| Real Sociedad | +1800 | 13.00 | 14/1 | 15 |
| Freiburg | +1800 | 13.00 | 20/1 | 21 |
| Sevilla | +1800 | 16.11 | 16/1 | 15 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | +2500 | 19.89 | 16/1 | 17 |
| Stade Rennes | +2500 | 26.00 | 40/1 | 41 |
