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We know you've been waiting for this moment. The Champions League draw was just a prelude to the real European competition. The one with the teams that have heart, and grit, and hard to pronounce names. The group stages of which will be decided today on a swank soundstage in Monaco.
Are you ready?
Let's Europa League.
Tottenham Hotspur are firmly ensconced in Pot 1 of the Europa League draw, with the fifth best UEFA coefficient in the competition, which means they'll avoid most of the Big Uglies™ in the group stages. But that's not to say that there aren't still some nasty teams waiting in Pots 2-4. Not only are there some seriously underrated clubs in the competition, but there are some absolutely horrid travel locations. Thought it was bad heading all the way to Tromsø in last year's competition? There are two – two – teams from Azerbaijan.
The draw is early in the United States, but you can still watch all the ping-pong balls with scraps of paper inside get pulled out of bowls. Here's how.
2015-16 Europa League Group Stage Draw
Date: Friday, August 28, 2015
Time: 1:00 p.m. CET (8:00 a.m. ET, 5:00 p.m. PT)
TV: Sky Sports News, Eurosport (UK only), not televised (USA)
Streaming: Sky Go (UK), UEFA.com (worldwide)