What Does it Mean in English Soccer to “Get Into Europe”?

As each English Premier League season winds down, there is a phrase that will be tossed around quite a bit: “Get into Europe.” What does this mean?

(Updated June 3, 2024)

The short answer here is that “making the top four” means “Qualify for European club competition next season.” But let’s go just a little deeper into it.

How is Soccer Organized Worldwide?

Without getting lost in the details, world soccer is divided into regions; there are seven of them, and Europe is one. Within each region there are three types of competitions: nation vs nation to qualify for the World Cup every four years, nation vs nation for the regional championship every (some other) four years, and club vs club for the regional championship. World Cup Qualifying is called just that. The others, in Europe’s case, are the European Championships and the Champions League.

The way teams qualify for the Champions League is also pretty complicated, but let’s keep it simple here. In England’s Premier League, the top four teams go to the group stage. This is basically what people mean when they say “Get into Europe.” The Champions League starts in September and ends in May.

This video is all about the worldwide structure of football:

Three Tournaments: Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League

It’s called the Champions League, by the way, because it used to be you had to win your home country to get in. But obviously that limits the number of teams, therefore the number of games, and therefore — and most importantly — the amount of money to be made by the clubs, the TV networks, and the criminal syndicate known as FIFA that runs this whole operation. So they have expanded it ever since. In two of the past four seasons, it has been an all-English final.

There is another European championship; it’s called the Europa League. Here, England is represented by the team finishing 5th and the team winning the FA Cup — unless the latter also qualifies for Champions League, in which case their spot goes to the no. 6 team. (Read all about the Europa League here.)

Now there is yet another European tournament, the UEFA Europa Conference League! This one takes the winner of the League Cup — again, unless that team qualifies elsewhere, in which case the next highest club in the table goes. Usually, this is no. 7 in England.

English Teams in the 2024-25 Champions League

For the 2024-25 competition, England are represented in the Champions League by Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool and Aston Villa. All four made it based on their Premier League finish.

Here is the schedule for the 2024-25 Champions League.

English Teams in the 2024-25 Europa League

Tottenham and Manchester United have both qualified for the 2024-25 Europa League. Tottenham got there based on finishing 5th in the Premier League. Manchester United made it because they won the FA Cup.

Here is the schedule for the 2024-25 Europa League.

English Teams in the 2024-25 Europa Conference League

(Related: What is the Europa Conference League?)

Chelsea have qualified for the 2024-25 Europa Conference League based on their 6th-place Premier League finish.

Here is the schedule for the 2024-25 Europa Conference League.

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