The battle for sixth... and why teams might need to lose on final day

As the Premier League's battle for European places hots up, BBC Sport assesses the situation - and some very strange potential quirks in the race. By Emlyn Begley BBC Sport journalist Bournemouth have claimed the edge in the battle for sixth place in the Premier League - and what could be the strangest Champions League spot yet. The in-form Cherries' 3-0 win over Crystal Palace helped them overtake Brentford into that position. Even more remarkably there might be teams on the final day who might need to LOSE to end up in the Champions League. At the very least sixth will earn a Europa League place - with some of the contenders having never qualified for Europe before.

Both elements needed for sixth place to be a Champions League spot seem quite plausible. Aston Villa would need to finish in fifth spot exactly (where they currently reside) and win the Europa League. The Premier League landed a fifth Champions League place because of English teams' performances in Europe - something called the European Performance Spot (EPS). So if Villa win the Europa League and finish fifth, that EPS spot would be passed down to the team in sixth - who would qualify for the Champions League. However, if Villa finish in the top four then winning the Europa League would make no difference to any other English teams.

In this situation the sixth-placed finisher would qualify for the Europa League. With Aston Villa six points clear in fifth spot, sixth appears to be the highest any of the other teams could finish. Bournemouth and Brentford have never played in any European competition before, while Brighton 's only Uefa campaign was in the 2023-24 Europa League. Newcastle , Crystal Palace and Leeds could still mathematically - but not realistically - qualify for the Champions League. Whoever just misses out on sixth will have the compensation of securing at least a Conference League spot, which as it stands goes to seventh place.

All the Villa/fifth-place shenanigans do not affect that - because if England gets that extra Champions League spot they lose a Europa League place. But, and of course there's a but, eighth place could yet qualify for the Conference League. If Manchester City win the FA Cup, or if Chelsea win it and finish in the top seven - they are currently ninth - then the European spots will change. In that scenario, seventh place would get into the Europa League and eighth would be a Conference League spot. It is unlikely to come to fruition but there is a chance the team in sixth place might need to lose on the final day to earn a Champions League spot.

If Brighton or Brentford were confident of holding on to sixth spot even with a loss - given they could be relying on their opponents to win and keep Villa in fifth place as explained above - that could get them into the Champions League instead of the Europa League. If Nottingham Forest win the Europa League and Crystal Palace win the Conference League (and don't finish in the top seven or eight), then half the league will be in Europe next season. All your football quizzes in one place As the Premier League's battle for European places hots up, BBC Sport assesses the situation - and some very strange potential quirks in the race. The battle for sixth... and why teams might need to lose on final day