 Match programme cover | |||||||
| Event | 2013–14 UEFA Europa League | ||||||
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| Afterextra time Sevilla won 4–2 onpenalties | |||||||
| Date | 14 May 2014 | ||||||
| Venue | Juventus Stadium,Turin | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Ivan Rakitić (Sevilla)[1] | ||||||
| Referee | Felix Brych (Germany)[2] | ||||||
| Attendance | 33,120[3] | ||||||
| Weather | Sunny 16 °C (61 °F) 40% humidity[4] | ||||||
←2013 2015 → | |||||||
The2014 UEFA Europa League final was the final match of the2013–14 UEFA Europa League, the 43rd season ofEurope's secondary clubfootball tournament organised byUEFA, and the fifth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to theUEFA Europa League. It was played at theJuventus Stadium inTurin, Italy on 14 May 2014,[5] between Spanish sideSevilla and Portuguese sideBenfica. Sevilla won the match 4–2 onpenalties, following a 0–0 draw afterextra time.[6][7]
Sevilla secured their third title in eight years, after winning the competition in2006 and2007. With this triumph, they joinedJuventus (1977,1990,1993),Inter Milan (1991,1994,1998) andLiverpool (1973,1976,2001) as the teams with the most wins. Benfica lost their second consecutive UEFA Europa League final, following their defeat againstChelsea in the2013 final. Including their runner-up finish in1983, Benfica are the team with the most lost finals in the competition.
As the winners, Sevilla earned the right to play against2013–14 UEFA Champions League winnersReal Madrid in the2014 UEFA Super Cup.
TheJuventus Stadium inTurin, Italy, was chosen as the venue of the match at a UEFA Executive Committee meeting inIstanbul, Turkey, on 20 March 2012.[8][9] It is the home stadium ofJuventus since 2011. This was the first time that a one-legged final was hosted in Turin. Previous UEFA Cup finals contested over two legs have had one of their matches played in Turin. The first legs of the1977 UEFA Cup final and the1990 UEFA Cup final, both contested by Juventus, were played at the Stadio Comunale (now theStadio Olimpico di Torino). The first leg of the1992 UEFA Cup final, contested byTorino, and the second leg of the1993 UEFA Cup final, contested by Juventus, were played at theStadio delle Alpi, which has been demolished to make way for the Juventus Stadium.[10]
After a comeback by their opponentsValencia, who had lost the first leg 2–0,Sevilla secured their presence in the final afterStéphane Mbia's injury-time header qualified them onaway goals.[11] Sevilla had previously played in two UEFA Cup finals, winning both times in2006 and2007,[12] and were aiming to become the fourth team towin three UEFA Cup/Europa League titles, afterJuventus,Inter Milan andLiverpool.[13]
Benfica reached their second consecutive Europa League final,[14] after defeatingJuventus 2–1 on aggregate and denying their opponents a chance to play the final at their home stadium.[15] It was the first time a club has reached consecutive finals in the competition, having featured in the Champions League group stage on each occasion. Both of their previous UEFA Cup/Europa League finals, in1983 and2013, ended in defeats. They had also played in sevenEuropean Cup finals (1961,1962,1963,1965,1968,1988,1990). After winning successive European titles in 1961 and 1962, they had lost seven straight major European finals.[12]
The final was Sevilla's 19th match in the competition, having started their participation in the third qualifying round against Montenegrin sideMladost Podgorica.[14] They only qualified for the competition afterMálaga were banned andRayo Vallecano were denied a UEFA license.[16] Benfica transitioned from theChampions League group stage, after finishing third in their group, behindParis Saint-Germain andOlympiacos. They became the first team to reach the Europa League final without conceding a defeat, registering six wins and two draws in eight knockout phase matches.[14]
The only previous meeting between Sevilla and Benfica in European competition was in the1957–58 European Cup preliminary round. The first leg atEstadio de Nervión, won by Sevilla 3–1, marked the European debut of both clubs. The second leg atEstádio da Luz ended 0–0, giving Sevilla the victory on aggregate, and they later reached the quarter-finals before losing to eventual championsReal Madrid.[17]
Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).
 Sevilla | Round |  Benfica | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Europa League | Champions League | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Qualifying phase (EL,CL) | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Mladost Podgorica | 9–1 | 3–0 (H) | 6–1 (A) | Third qualifying round | Bye | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Śląsk Wrocław | 9–1 | 4–1 (H) | 5–0 (A) | Play-off round | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Result | Group stage (EL,CL) | Opponent | Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estoril | 2–1 (A) | Matchday 1 |  Anderlecht | 2–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 SC Freiburg | 2–0 (H) | Matchday 2 |  Paris Saint-Germain | 0–3 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Slovan Liberec | 1–1 (A) | Matchday 3 |  Olympiacos | 1–1 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Slovan Liberec | 1–1 (H) | Matchday 4 | Olympiacos | 0–1 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Estoril | 1–1 (H) | Matchday 5 | Anderlecht | 3–2 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SC Freiburg | 2–0 (A) | Matchday 6 | Paris Saint-Germain | 2–1 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group H winners
Source:Soccerway | Final standings | Group C third place
Source:UEFA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Europa League | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Knockout phase | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Maribor | 4–3 | 2–2 (A) | 2–1 (H) | Round of 32 | PAOK | 4–0 | 1–0 (A) | 3–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Real Betis | 2–2 (4–3p) | 0–2 (H) | 2–0 (A) | Round of 16 |  Tottenham Hotspur | 5–3 | 3–1 (A) | 2–2 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Porto | 4–2 | 0–1 (A) | 4–1 (H) | Quarter-finals |  AZ | 3–0 | 1–0 (A) | 2–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Valencia | 3–3 (a) | 2–0 (H) | 1–3 (A) | Semi-finals |  Juventus | 2–1 | 2–1 (H) | 0–0 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Former Italy international and Juventus playerCiro Ferrara, who won the UEFA Cup in 1989 withNapoli, was named as the ambassador for the final.[18]
UEFA unveiled the visual identity of the final on 30 August 2013, the same day as the group stage draw.[19]
The international ticket sales phase for the general public ran from 27 February to 25 March 2014. Tickets were available in four price categories:€150, €100, €70, and €45.[20]
German refereeFelix Brych was named by UEFA on 7 May 2014 as the referee of the final.[2] The rest of the refereeing team are fellow countrymen Mark Borsch and Stefan Lupp as assistant referees, Tobias Welz and Bastian Dankert as additional assistant referees, Thorsten Schiffner as reserve assistant referee, and Serbia's Milorad Mažić as the fourth official.
Benfica were not able to play eitherEnzo Pérez orLazar Marković, both of whom were sent off in the second leg of their semi-final.[21]Eduardo Salvio, who was booked in that match, was also suspended.[22]
At full-time, the game was locked at 0–0. After a further 30 minutes of extra time, both sides were still scoreless.[23] This meant the match was the first final to end goalless and the first to be decided by penalty shoot outs.[24] Sevilla won the penalty shoot out 4–2, their goals coming fromCarlos Bacca,Stéphane Mbia,Coke andKevin Gameiro.Lima andLuisão scored for Benfica, while Sevilla goalkeeperBeto saved goals fromÓscar Cardozo andRodrigo.[23]Paul Gardner writing forSoccer America opined that theassistant referee standing on the goal line allowed Beto to advance too far when he saved the two goals and that Benfica should have been allowed to take the shots again.[25][26]
       Sevilla[4] |      Benfica[4] |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees:[2] | Match rules[27]
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