For the first time in football history, English clubs have secured a place in the finals of all three major European competitions in a single season.
The milestone was confirmed on Thursday night following semi-final victories for Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, joining Arsenal who had already qualified for the Champions League final.
This achievement makes the Premier League the first league ever to have representatives in the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals simultaneously.
Aston Villa overturned a 1-0 first-leg deficit against Nottingham Forest, storming back with a 4-1 aggregate victory. Under the guidance of Unai Emery—who is chasing his fifth Europa League title, Villa will face German side SC Freiburg in the final on May 20. This marks a significant opportunity for the club to secure its first major trophy in 30 years and its first European title since the 1982 European Cup.
Crystal Palace continued their remarkable run under Oliver Glasner, defeating Shakhtar Donetsk 5-2 on aggregate. The Eagles are set to face Spain’s Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final on May 27. Having already secured the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025, Palace is looking to cap off a golden era with their first-ever European trophy before Glasner’s expected departure at the end of the season.
English football narrowly missed this feat in 2025 when Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur won their respective finals, but Arsenal fell short in the Champions League semi-finals. While Italian clubs reached all three finals in 2023, they ultimately lost every match. The current dominance of English teams mirrors the 1990 season when Italian clubs swept all three available trophies, a standard the Premier League trio will now hope to emulate.
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