It’s officially down to two clubs in Europe’s second-best competition as La Liga outfit Sevilla locks horns with Serie A side AS Roma in the Europa League Final on Wednesday, May 31st at Pusak Arena in Budapest, Hungary. The kick-off is scheduled for 3 PM ET. Sevilla finds themselves in the grand finale after beating Juventus 3-2 across two legs in the semis, while Roma took out Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 on aggregate. Continue reading for the Sevilla vs Roma prediction.
There’s really no clear favorite here, with Sevilla sitting just ahead of Roma at +160 odds at Bovada online sportsbook for an implied win probability of 38.46%. The Italians come back at +195 and have a 33.90% chance of coming out victorious. These two sides have previously met once in the competition back in the 2019-20 Round of 16, where the Spaniards prevailed 2-0 to advance.
Can Sevilla Conquer Europa Again?
It’s well known by now that Sevilla is the king of Europa. They’ve won a tournament-best six titles and last captured the ultimate prize in 2020. This time around, Jose Mendilibar’s men began the campaign in the Champions League but unfortunately bowed out in the group stages. That dropped them back to Europa, where Rojiblancos have looked rather dominant.
First, Sevilla eliminated Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven before beating Fenerbahce in the Round of 16. Next, they took care of Manchester United in the quarterfinals before just getting past Juve in the semifinals. The opening leg against the Old Lady ended in a 1-1 draw in Turin. In the reverse fixture, Dusan Vlahovic put Juventus ahead in the second half but just minutes later, Suso equalized. That meant extra time, where Erik Lamela scored the eventual winner in the 95th minute. While Sevilla would get a red card in the 115th minute, they managed to hold on.
Now, Los Nervionenses have the chance to conquer Europa once again. They’re also in good form, tasting defeat just once in their last 14 games but do clash with Real Madrid this weekend before traveling to Budapest a few days later. Domestically, Sevilla is actually in ninth though therefore the only way the side is getting into the Champions League next season is by defeating Roma next Wednesday.
More Mourinho Hardware?
Roma might not be the most dominant side in Serie A, but they’ve had some success in Europe. The Giallorossi actually won the Conference League last season, beating Feyenoord in the final. Winning silverware is nothing new for Jose Mourinho, one of the most successful managers of this generation.
The Wolves finished second in the group stages behind Real Betis with 10 points and then went on to eliminate several good sides, including Real Sociedad, Feyenoord, RB Salzburg, and then Leverkusen in the semis. Midfielder Edoardo Bove netted a huge goal in the first leg and then Roma essentially parked the bus in the second leg, despite getting outplayed by their German opposition.
Leverkusen had a whopping 23 attempts and six on goal, while Roma had just one shot and none on target. Frankly, it’s a miracle they’re in the final considering that performance. Nevertheless, the Italians are here and ready to try and take down the most accomplished club in Europa history.
Over in Serie A, Mourinho’s group is in sixth spot and four points off fourth place AC Milan. Just like Sevilla, a victory next week would solidify their place in next season’s Champions League. When it comes to current form, Roma is winless in three games but all of them ended level. The Yellow and Reds visit Fiorentina on Saturday and will be hoping to find a positive result in preparation for the final.
Europa History
The Europa League was rebranded in 2009. As previously mentioned, Sevilla is the most successful side of the bunch, but there have actually been two Serie A sides who have conquered the competition. Inter Milan has three titles, while Juventus has two. The reigning champions are Eintracht Frankfurt, who beat Rangers in last year’s final. Roma previously appeared in the final in 1991 when the tournament was called the UEFA Cup. The winner earns an automatic berth in the UCL.
Sevilla vs Roma Prediction
This is a tough one to pick. But, to me, Sevilla is just the stronger team and appears to be in much better form. Plus, they know exactly what it takes to turn up in order to win Europa. I’m looking at the moneyline here, but the under two goals at -111 is also worth a bet.
Quinn Allen is a journalist who specializes in writing sports betting previews. He holds a senior editor position at ClutchPoints. He has been contributing to Vegas Betting as a writer since 2022.