Conference League draw LIVE! Aston Villa, Ajax and more learn last-16 opponents

Conference League draw LIVE!

West Ham, Liverpool and Brighton have learned their Europa League opponents, so now it is time for the Conference League draw and Aston Villa’s turn. Villa are the sole British representative and are considered among the favourites to win the whole thing as they sit fourth in the Premier League and have Unai Emery at the helm.

Also in the mix are Dutch giants Ajax - who are not seeded - plus Fiorentina, Lille, Fenerbahce, Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos after last night’s play-off action. The eight group stage winners from the Conference League group stage are seeded, and will face the knockout round play-off winners. No team from the same nation can face each other.

Villa will be hoping for a kind draw - will they get it? The action gets under way in Lyon from 12pm UK time. Follow the draw LIVE below with our dedicated match blog. Stick with us for all the build-up, action and reaction.

Europa League draw latest

• Start time: 12pm GMT

• How to watch: TNT Sports

Draw in full

12:21 , Alex Young

Sturm Graz vs Lille

Dinamo Zagreb vs PAOK

Union SG vs Fenerbahce

Molde vs Club Brugge

Ajax vs Aston Villa

Sevette vs Viktoria Plzen

Maccabi Haifa vs Fiorentina

Olympiacos vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv

12:19 , Alex Young

Olympiacos vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv

12:18 , Alex Young

Maccabi Haifa vs Fiorentina

12:18 , Alex Young

Sturm Graz vs Lille

12:16 , Alex Young

Dinamo Zagreb vs PAOK

12:16 , Alex Young

Union SG vs Fenerbahce

12:14 , Alex Young

Molde vs Club Brugge

12:14 , Alex Young

The tie we all wanted.

12:13 , Alex Young

Ajax vs Aston Villa

12:12 , Alex Young

Sevette vs Viktoria Plzen

12:11 , Alex Young

It’s draw time.

12:08 , Alex Young

Now it’s time to be told how the draw will work.

12:07 , Alex Young

Now to find out who will be Giorgio’s special guest... it’s Kostas Katsouranis!

The final this year is in Athens, after all.

12:05 , Alex Young

Here comes man of the hour UEFA deputy general secretary Giorgio Marchetti.

12:03 , Alex Young

Currently being treated to a lovely montage of Conference League action from the group stage.

12:01 , Alex Young

Right, we’re back in Nyon.

12:00 , Alex Young

Almost time.

Unseeded teams

11:51 , Alex Young

Ajax

Dinamo Zagreb

Maccabi Haifa

Molde

Olympiacos

Servette

Sturm Graz

Union SG

Seeded teams

11:49 , Alex Young

Aston Villa

Club Brugge

Fenerbahce

Fiorentina

LOSC Lille

Maccabi Tel-Aviv

PAOK

Viktoria Plzen

11:28 , Alex Young

Up next is the Conference League draw.

Draw in full

11:24 , Alex Young

Qarabag vs Bayer Leverkusen

AC Milan vs Slavia Prague

Sporting vs Atalanta

Freiburg vs West Ham

Benfica vs Rangers

Roma vs Brighton

Marseille vs Villarreal

Sparta Prague vs Liverpool

11:20 , Alex Young

Qarabag vs Bayer Leverkusen

11:20 , Alex Young

AC Milan vs Slavia Prague

11:19 , Alex Young

Sporting vs Atalanta

11:18 , Alex Young

Freiburg vs West Ham

11:17 , Alex Young

Benfica vs Rangers

11:16 , Alex Young

Roma vs Brighton

11:14 , Alex Young

Marseille vs Villarreal

11:13 , Alex Young

Sparta Prague vs Liverpool

11:12 , Alex Young

Right then, it’s time to pick those balls.

11:10 , Alex Young

Just in case you were born yesterday, we are being told how the draw will work.

11:08 , Alex Young

As the final is in Dublin, obviously John O’Shea is on hand to help with today’s draw.

11:07 , Alex Young

Here comes man of the hour UEFA deputy general secretary Giorgio Marchetti.

11:00 , Alex Young

Moments away from go-time.

10:48 , Alex Young

It’s worth noting before the draw that each of the five British teams cannot be drawn against each other in this round.

Once we hit the quarter-finals, then all bets are off. But they will be separated by the seedings in the last-16 stage.

10:31 , Alex Young

Half an hour until balls are picked from bowls.

10:15 , Alex Young

The Conference League draw will follow this, in which Aston Villa are involved. That will start around midday.

How they got here

09:55 , Alex Young

It was an eventful night last night. Here’s a quick recap of what happened.

• Benfica beat Toulouse 2-1 on aggregate

• Qarabag beat Braga 6-5 on aggregate

• Freiburg beat Lens 3-2 on aggregate

• AC Milan beat Rennes 5-3 on aggregate

• Sporting beat Young Boys 4-2 on aggregate

• Sparta Prague beat Galatasaray 6-4 on aggregate

• Marseille beat Shakhtar Donetsk 5-3 on aggregate

• Roma beat Feyenoord 4-2 on penalties after a 2-2 draw

09:43 , Alex Young

The quarter-finals will be on April 11 and 18, with the semi-finals then slated for May 2 and 9.

The Europa League final is scheduled to take place on May 22 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Dates

09:30 , Alex Young

March 7: Europa League first leg (A) March 7

March 14: Europa League second leg (H)

Unseeded teams

09:23 , Alex Young

...and here’s who they could face.

• AC Milan

• Benfica

• Freiburg

• Marseille

• Qarabag

• Roma

• Sparta Prague

• Sporting

Seeded teams

09:12 , Alex Young

Here’s who will play the second leg at home.

• Atalanta

• Brighton

• Leverkusen

• Liverpool

• Rangers

• Slavia Prague

• Villarreal

• West Ham

How can I watch the Europa League last-16 draw?

09:05 , Alex Young

TV channel: In the UK, the draw for the last 16 of the Europa League will be shown live on TNT Sports 2, with coverage starting at 11am GMT.

Live stream: TNT Sports subscribers can also watch the draw live online via the Discovery+ app or website.

Welcome

08:56 , Alex Young

Hello and welcome to the Standard’s LIVE coverage of the Europa League last-16 draw.

Liverpool, West Ham and Brighton are all involved and will soon learn who they must beat for a place in the quarter-finals.

The action in Nyon gets underway at 11am UK time, so stick with us.