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Aston Villa Headed Back to Champions League For First Time Since 1982–83
Aston Villa is heading back to the Champions League for the first time in more than 40 years.
With Tottenham's 2–0 loss to Manchester City on Tuesday, Villa clinched a spot in the Premier League's top four. It will be the club's first time playing in the competition since it was rebranded from the European Cup in 1992.
On Monday, Aston Villa staged a furious comeback to earn a 3–3 draw against Liverpool. Down 3–1 late, Jhon Durán netted goals in the 85th and 88th minutes to secure a point. That gave Unai Emery's squad 68 points on the season with one match remaining. Tottenham sits in fifth with 63.
Tottenham is out of the Champions League but is still battling with Newcastle, Chelsea and Manchester United for spots in the Europa League and Conference League. Those berths will be decided on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday.
Villa reached the semifinals of the Conference League this season before losing to Olympiacos 6–2 on aggregate. Prior to that, the club hadn't played in a European competition since 2011. Villa won the European Cup back in 1982, scoring a 1–0 win over Bayern Munich.
Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.