Juventus and Milan Face Challenging Europa League Paths

Italian football will travel a hard road through Europe this season. The draw in Montecarlo handed Juventus and Milan league-phase schedules in the 2026-27 Europa League that are heavy on air miles, awkward away days and very little margin for error.

They are Serie A’s only standard-bearers in the competition. Both arrive with something to prove.

Last season’s domestic table tells the story. Milan stumbled to fifth, Juventus slid in just behind them in sixth. No Champions League lights, no anthem. Just the grind of Thursday nights and a long route back to the top table.

Now they know exactly what that route looks like.

Juventus: Tradition Meets Traps

Luciano Spalletti already cut a frustrated figure in Frosinone last week, photographed on the touchline at Stadio Benito Stirpe with the look of a coach who understands the size of the rebuild in Turin. The Europa League draw will not ease his mood.

Juventus have drawn a group of opponents that mixes technical quality with awkward, underrated trips:

• Real Sociedad (H)
• AZ Alkmaar (A)
• Rennes (H)
• Ferencváros (A)
• Omonia (H)
• Celta Vigo (A)
• NEC (H)
• Hapoel Beer Sheva (A)

On paper, it’s a slate a club of Juventus’ stature should navigate. On the pitch, it’s a different story.

Real Sociedad in Turin brings immediate tension: a possession-savvy side capable of punishing any sluggishness in the Bianconeri’s build-up. AZ Alkmaar away is the classic Europa League banana skin — a tight Dutch ground, a young, energetic team, and weather that can turn a routine night into a scrap.

Rennes at home offers no respite. The French club have made a habit of unsettling bigger names with pace and vertical attacks. Then come the long hauls: Ferencváros in Budapest, and a journey even further to face Hapoel Beer Sheva, where the atmosphere and conditions can drain legs and focus.

Celta Vigo away jumps off the page. A trip to Spain against a side that likes the ball, at a stadium that rises when a big name comes to town. That fixture alone can tilt the tone of Juventus’ campaign.

Juventus do at least get NEC and Omonia in Turin — fixtures that, for a team with their European history, must be treated as non-negotiable wins. Drop points there, and the pressure on every remaining match will spike.

Under the new Europa League format, the top eight teams in the overall league phase go straight to the Round of 16. Those from ninth to 24th drop into a knock-out play-off. For a club of Juventus’ size, anything outside the top eight would feel like a step short.

The schedule starts on September 16/17 and runs all the way to January 28, 2027. Across that stretch, Spalletti’s side will need depth, discipline and something that’s been missing in Turin for too long: a ruthless European edge.

Milan: Heavyweights, Hostile Grounds and English Grit

If Juventus’ path looks tricky, Milan’s feels outright volatile.

Ruben Amorim, animated on the touchline during Milan’s league opener in Turin, now faces a European calendar laced with pedigree, travel and contrasting styles:

• Benfica (H)
• Olympiacos (A)
• Ferencváros (H)
• Salzburg (A)
• Sunderland (H)
• Bournemouth (A)
• Ararat (H)
• Levski Sofia (A)

Benfica at San Siro is a tie worthy of a later round. Two clubs with deep European histories, two fanbases that expect more than Thursday nights. It’s a glamour fixture, but it’s also a test of where Milan truly stand under Amorim.

Then comes Piraeus. Olympiacos away is never just a football match. The noise, the flares, the hostility — it can swallow even seasoned sides. If Milan show any fragility, that trip will expose it.

Ferencváros at home and Ararat in Milan should, on paper, give the Rossoneri chances to control tempo and rack up points. Yet the draw refuses to let them settle. Salzburg away brings high pressing and relentless running in the Austrian cold, a game that can quickly turn wild if Milan lose their structure.

The English double adds another layer of intrigue. Sunderland at home will bring a physical, combative opponent to San Siro, while Bournemouth away drags Milan into the intensity of an English coastal ground where the crowd sits almost on top of the pitch. Neither fixture will resemble the slower rhythms of Serie A.

Levski Sofia away completes a schedule that stretches Milan across the continent. Different climates, different cultures, different demands on a squad that must adapt on the fly.

Like Juventus, Milan are chasing a place in the top eight of the overall table to avoid the knock-out play-off trapdoor. With Benfica, Olympiacos and Salzburg in their path, there is little room for a slow start.

A Long Road to Frankfurt

The Europa League league phase will define the first half of the season for both Italian clubs. UEFA will confirm the full fixture list on Saturday, August 29, but the framework is already clear: eight games, one table, and a sprint that lasts more than four months.

The reward sits in Frankfurt, where the Europa League final will be played on May 26, 2027.

For Juventus, it is a chance to restore damaged European pride. For Milan, it is an opportunity to turn a fifth-place finish into a springboard rather than a ceiling.

Two giants, one competition, and a continent full of traps between them and Frankfurt. Which one will still be standing when the stakes peak in late May?