Where to Watch Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa May 2026 – The 2025/2026 Europa League semi-finals present an all-English clash that is guaranteed to be exciting and full of prestige.

Nottingham Forest will face Aston Villa in the first leg, which could be decisive in determining the path toward the final.

This match is scheduled to take place at City Ground on Thursday, 30 April 2026 at 08.00 PM local time.

The winner of this highly anticipated two-legged tie between two former European Cup champions will face Braga or Freiburg in the final at Besiktas Park, Istanbul, on 20 May.

For those who do not want to miss the excitement of this match, let us take a look at Mansion Sports’ recommendations for where to watch Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa in May 2026.

Team News Ahead of the Match

Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest enter their first major European semi-final since 1984 with high spirits after surprising many with a dominant 5-0 victory over Sunderland in the Premier League last Friday.

That result extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to eight matches, consisting of five wins and three draws.

Vítor Pereira has successfully restored a positive atmosphere at City Ground. The Tricky Trees now hold an advantage in their fight to remain in the Premier League, as they sit five points above the relegation zone with four league matches remaining, including a match against Chelsea next week.

Forest now shift their focus to the first all-Midlands clash in UEFA competition history, as well as the first all-English semi-final since Manchester United defeated Arsenal in the 2008-09 Champions League.

The most recent all-English Europa League match took place last season when Tottenham Hotspur defeated Manchester United 1-0 in the final.

After finishing 13th in the league phase with four wins, two draws, and two defeats, Forest advanced past Fenerbahce, Midtjylland, and Porto to reach the Europa League semi-finals. They eliminated Porto with a 2-1 aggregate victory in the quarter-finals earlier this month.

The Tricky Trees, who won the European Cup in 1979 and 1980 under Brian Clough, failed to defeat Aston Villa in both Premier League meetings this season.

However, they have positive momentum with an unbeaten record in their last four home matches against The Lions, recording two wins and two draws, including a 1-1 scoreline at City Ground on 12 April.

Regarding squad condition, Nottingham Forest will definitely be without Callum Hudson-Odoi, Murillo (hamstring), John Victor, Nicolo Savona, Willy Boly (all knee injuries), and Luca Netz, who is ineligible to play. Jair Cunha also remains doubtful after suffering a shoulder injury against Sunderland.

Morato is expected to return to the starting lineup in defence alongside Nikola Milenkovic. Pereira is also considering starting Stefan Ortega in place of Mats Sels in goal, considering Ortega has featured in Forest’s last three Europa League matches.

Morgan Gibbs-White is currently in excellent form, having scored five goals in his last three matches across all competitions.

He is predicted to continue on the left side of midfield if Pereira maintains the Chris Wood and Igor Jesus partnership in attack. Jesus is among the top scorers in this season’s Europa League with seven goals.

Aston Villa

After reaching the Conference League semi-finals in 2024 and the Champions League quarter-finals last season, Aston Villa, who are among the favourites to win the Europa League, now hope to reach their first European final since winning the 1982 European Cup after defeating Bayern Munich.

The Lions are currently led by the experienced Unai Emery, who recently made history as the fastest manager in club history to reach 100 victories, achieving the milestone in just 181 matches.

The Spanish coach is also the only manager in Europa League history to win the competition four times, three with Sevilla and once with Villarreal.

Emery has emphasized that winning the Europa League this season is extremely important for Aston Villa. They are currently the highest-scoring team in the competition with 24 goals, one ahead of Nottingham Forest, who have collected 23 goals. In addition, Villa share the highest number of clean sheets with Braga, both recording seven.

Villa finished second in the league phase with 21 points, level with Lyon at the top of the standings, after seven wins and one defeat.

They then eliminated Lille and Bologna in the knockout rounds, including a dominant 7-1 aggregate victory over Bologna in the quarter-finals.

However, the Midlands side arrive for the first leg following a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Fulham in the Premier League last weekend.

That defeat dropped them to fifth in the standings. Nevertheless, Champions League qualification can still be secured this weekend if they defeat Spurs and Brighton fail to achieve a positive result.

Regarding squad condition, Aston Villa remain without Boubacar Kamara (knee) and Alysson (unspecified). Amadou Onana will also undergo a late fitness test after missing the match against Fulham due to a knee issue.

Lamare Bogarde is expected to feature in midfield alongside Youri Tielemans if Onana is not fit enough. Ross Barkley and Douglas Luiz are also available as additional options.

Ollie Watkins, who has scored three goals in his last two Europa League away matches, is expected to remain the main striker.

Morgan Rogers, John McGinn, and Emiliano Buendia will provide attacking support. In defence, Ian Maatsen and Tyrone Mings are likely to return to the starting XI.

Where to Watch Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa May 2026

For those who want to watch the match and are still searching for where to watch Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa in May 2026, depending on your country of residence, this match can be watched through several official platforms such as:

• TNT Sports
• DAZN
• Paramount+
• beIN Sports
• VTVCab
• SPOTV

This match is guaranteed to be highly competitive as both teams share major ambitions to advance to the Europa League final.

Nottingham Forest arrive with positive momentum, while Aston Villa possess experience and a highly competitive squad. Make sure you do not miss this exciting encounter through the official platforms available in your region.