After a heartbreaking UEFA Champions League exit, Turkish Süper Lig holders Galatasaray prepare to continue their continental campaign in the Europa League with playoff draws set for Monday.
Having dropped into the second-tier by finishing third in Champions League Group A, Galatasaray’s opponent in the next round will be determined in the draw ceremony at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.
Galatasaray's potential opponents span across Europe. These include Freiburg from Germany, Olympic Marseille, Rennes and Toulouse from France, Azerbaijan's Qarabağ, Roma from Italy, Sparta Prague from Czechia and Sporting Lisbon from Portugal.
Building on last season’s structure, the competition has shifted from the previous Round of 32 knockout stage leading into the last 16. It now features a playoff round.
This round includes the second-place teams from each Europa League group competing against the teams that placed third in their respective Champions League groups.
The winners of these matches will move forward to the last 16, joining the victorious teams from the Europa League group stage.
The eight teams that topped their groups in the Europa League and advanced to the knockouts will bypass the draw and move directly to the last 16.
The draw will seed the eight teams that finished second in their group stages, while the eight teams that placed third in their Champions League groups will remain unseeded.
Each match-up will pit one seeded team against one unseeded team, with the seeded team having the home-field advantage in the second leg.
While Galatasaray awaits their fate in the Europa League, Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe, who have already advanced directly to the last 16 rounds in the European Conference League after topping Group H, will get to learn their opponent in the last 16 draw scheduled for Feb. 23, 2024, following the conclusion of the play-off round.
