 Match programme cover | |||||||
| Event | 2014–15 UEFA Europa League | ||||||
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| Date | 27 May 2015 | ||||||
| Venue | National Stadium,Warsaw | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Éver Banega (Sevilla)[1] | ||||||
| Referee | Martin Atkinson (England)[2] | ||||||
| Attendance | 45,000[3] | ||||||
| Weather | Partly cloudy 13 °C (55 °F) 65% humidity[4] | ||||||
←2014 2016 → | |||||||
The2015 UEFA Europa League final was the final match of the2014–15 UEFA Europa League, the 44th season ofEurope's secondary clubfootball tournament organised byUEFA, and the sixth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to theUEFA Europa League. It was played at theNational Stadium inWarsaw, Poland, on 27 May 2015,[5] between Ukrainian sideDnipro Dnipropetrovsk and the title holders, Spanish sideSevilla. Sevilla won the match 3–2 for a record fourth title.[6][7]
As winners, Sevilla earned the right to play against the winners of the2014–15 UEFA Champions League,Barcelona, in the2015 UEFA Super Cup. Moreover, for the first time, a place in the UEFA Champions League was reserved for the UEFA Europa League winners, meaning that Sevilla automatically qualified for the2015–16 UEFA Champions League despite not qualifying through their domestic league position.[8] They were guaranteed to enter at the group stage, since the 2015 Champions League finalists (Juventus andBarcelona) have already qualified for the group stage via their domestic leagues and therefore the berth in the group stage reserved for the Champions League title holders are not used.[9]
TheNational Stadium was announced as the venue of the final at the UEFA Executive Committee meeting on 23 May 2013.[10] This was the first UEFA club final hosted in Poland.
The National Stadium is a retractable roof football stadium located in Warsaw, Poland. It is used mostly for football matches and it is the home stadium ofPoland national football team. The stadium has a seating capacity of 58,145 which makes it the largest association football arena in Poland. Its construction started in 2008 and finished in November 2011. It is located on the site of the formerStadion Dziesięciolecia, on Aleja Zieleniecka in Praga Południe district, near the city centre. It hosted three group matches (including the opening match), a quarter-final, and a semi-final inUEFA Euro 2012, co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine.
This was Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk's first European final. They were the second Ukrainian team to reach the UEFA Cup/Europa League final, afterShakhtar Donetsk, who defeatedWerder Bremen in the2009 final inIstanbul, and the third Ukrainian team to play a European final, after Shakhtar Donetsk andDynamo Kyiv, who won twoCup Winners' Cup finals in1975 and1986 as representatives of theSoviet Union. Before this final, Ukrainian clubs had won every major European final which they had competed.[11]
This was Sevilla's fourth UEFA Cup/Europa League final. They won all three of their previous finals (in2006,2007 and2014). As they won their fourth title, they became the outright record holder, breaking a tie withJuventus,Inter Milan andLiverpool.[12] Their managerUnai Emery, who was also the winning manager in 2014, became thefifth coach to win the title twice or more, afterGiovanni Trapattoni (Juventus in 1977 and 1993, Inter Milan in 1991),Luis Molowny (Real Madrid in 1985 and 1986),Juande Ramos (Sevilla in 2006 and 2007) andRafael Benítez (Valencia in 2004,Chelsea in 2013).[13]
The two sides had never met in UEFA club competitions.[14]
Note: In the table, the score of the finalist is given first (H = home; A = away).
As runners-up of the2013–14 Ukrainian Premier League behind Shakhtar, Dnipro were awarded a spot in the third qualifying round of the2014–15 UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history. They were drawn against Danish runners-upFC Copenhagen, but a draw in the first leg at home, followed by a 2–0 defeat in Denmark, meant they dropped down into the Europa League play-off, where they defeatedHajduk Split to reach the group stage for the third time in a row.
Dnipro were drawn inGroup F withInter Milan,Saint-Étienne, andQarabağ. The group stage campaign started disastrously for the Ukrainians, who earned only a single point in their first three games with a 0–0 draw away to Saint-Étienne and 1–0 home defeats to both Inter and Qarabağ. On matchday 4, a 2–1 away win over the Azerbaijani team ended a winless run, but Dnipro were again defeated by Inter 2–1 in Milan, despite taking a 1–0 lead throughRuslan Rotan's early goal. Dnipro went into their final group match at home to Saint-Étienne at the bottom of the Group F table and needing a win to stand a chance of qualifying;[15]Artem Fedetskyi scored the only goal of the match midway through the second half to secure a 1–0 win.[16] With Qarabağ only managing a 0–0 draw against group winners Inter, Dnipro finished the group stage in second place with seven points.[17]
As title holders, Sevilla qualified for the group stage automatically, and were placed in Group G withFeyenoord,Rijeka andStandard Liège. They began their campaign with a 2–0 win over Feyenoord, with first-half goals fromGrzegorz Krychowiak andStéphane Mbia. Two weeks later, Mbia earned a 2–2 draw at Rijeka. Sevilla then played Liège twice, a goalless away draw and a 3–1 home victory with goals fromKevin Gameiro,José Antonio Reyes andCarlos Bacca. They then lost 2–0 away to Feyenoord, sending the Dutch side to the knockout stage ahead of Sevilla. The Spanish side secured second place in the final game with a home victory over Rijeka viaDenis Suárez's first European goal.[18]
Former Poland international goalkeeperJerzy Dudek, who won the Champions League withLiverpool in 2005, was named the ambassador for the final.[19]
In May 2015, EnglishrefereeMartin Atkinson was chosen to oversee the final. He was joined by compatriots Stephen Child and Michael Mullarkey asassistant referees,Andre Marriner andAnthony Taylor asadditional assistant referees, Jake Collin asreserve assistant referee, and the CzechPavel Královec asfourth official.[2]
UEFA unveiled the visual identity of the final on 29 August 2014.[20]
With a stadium capacity of 56,000, a total of 44,000 tickets were made available to fans and the general public, with the two finalist teams receiving 9,500 tickets each and 25,000 tickets sold to fans worldwide via the UEFA website from 26 February to 25 March 2015 in four price categories:€130, €90, €65, and €40.[21]
At the behest of club president José Castro, Sevilla chose to wear their red away kit, featuring their badge rather than the "SFC" monogram which they had previously been sporting.[22]
Although Sevilla dominated possession in the early exchanges, Dnipro opened the scoring after seven minutes whenNikola Kalinić headed in a cross fromMatheus. In the 28th minute, Dnipro failed to clear from a free kick and Sevilla midfielderGrzegorz Krychowiak took possession of the ball, taking a step to evadeLéo Matos before shooting an equaliser in his home country. Only three minutes later, the Spanish club took the lead, when captainJosé Antonio Reyes, in what was reported to be his final match for Sevilla, foundCarlos Bacca who rounded Dnipro goalkeeperDenys Boyko. Only two minutes before half time, Dnipro equalised, withRuslan Rotan dispatching a free kick pastSergio Rico.[23]
In the 58th minute, Sevilla made the game's first substitution: Reyes made way forCoke, who went into his habitual right-back position, pushingAleix Vidal forward into the right-wing position held by Reyes. Fifteen minutes later, Sevilla scored the winner, Bacca converting after being supplied byVitolo. Soon after, Dnipro made an attacking change, replacing Kalinić withYevhen Seleznyov, and Sevilla substituted Bacca forKevin Gameiro. The two teams then made their last substitutions in the closing stages, Dnipro replacedJaba Kankava withYevhen Shakhov and Sevilla took offÉver Banega forVicente Iborra.[23]
Soon after all changes had been made, Dnipro's Matheus collapsed and was taken off by medical staff. ManagerMyron Markevych confirmed that he was treated at hospital for a nasal fracture and a head injury, being discharged in good health hours later to reunite with his teammates.[24]
Sevilla's record fourth title meant that Spain and Italy were tied with the most UEFA Cup/Europa League titles, with both countries having won nine times.[25][26]José Antonio Reyes became the first player to win the UEFA Cup/Europa League four times, as he was also a member of the winning side forAtlético Madrid in 2010 and 2012 (although he missed the latter final) and for Sevilla in 2014.[27] Three players had won the title three times:Ray Clemence,Giuseppe Bergomi, andNicola Berti.
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk | 2–3 |  Sevilla |
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        Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk[4] |     Sevilla[4] |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees:[2] | Match rules[28]
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