FC Groningen in European football

Groningen made their European debut in the 1983–84 UEFA Cup. In the first round, they won 4–2 on aggregate against Atlético Madrid, highlighted by a 3–0 home win. However, their campaign ended in the second round against Inter Milan, where despite a 2–0 home win, they were eliminated after a 5–1 away loss, resulting in a 5–3 defeat on aggregate.

The club returned to the UEFA Cup in the 1986–87 season. They secured victories over Galway United (8–2 on aggregate) and Neuchâtel Xamax (1–1 on aggregate, advancing on away goals) before being eliminated by Vitória S.C. in the third round.

In the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, Groningen again reached the third round. They faced Atlético Madrid in the first round, progressing on away goals. Subsequent victories over Servette (3–1 on aggregate) saw them advance to the third round, where they were defeated by VfB Stuttgart.

The early 1990s saw Groningen make brief appearances in European competitions. In the 1991–92 UEFA Cup, they were eliminated in the first round by Rot-Weiß Erfurt, losing both home and away matches 1–0. The following season, 1992–93, Groningen were again eliminated in the first round, following a 2–1 defeat on aggregate against Vác FC-Samsung.

After a 13-year absence, Groningen returned to European football in the mid-2000s. In the 2006–07 UEFA Cup, they faced Partizan in the first round. Despite a 1–0 home victory, a 4–2 away loss led to a 4–3 loss on aggregate. The following season, 2007–08, saw them paired with Fiorentina in the first round. After both legs ended in 1–1 draws, Groningen were eliminated after a penalty shoot-out.

By winning the 2014–15 KNVB Cup, their first major honour, Groningen were granted direct entry into the group stages of the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League. Groningen faced Olympique de Marseille, Braga, and Slovan Liberec. They finished last in the group, drawing twice and losing four times.

As of 10 December 2015

Season	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Aggregate
1983–84 UEFA Cup	First round	Atlético Madrid	3–0[1]	1–2[2]	4–2
	Second round	Inter Milan	2–0[3]	1–5[4]	3–5
1986–87 UEFA Cup	First round	Galway United	5–1[5]	3–1[6]	8–2
	Second round	Neuchâtel Xamax	0–0[7]	1–1[8]	1–1 (a)
	Third round	Vitória S.C.	1–0[9]	0–3[10]	1–3
1988–89 UEFA Cup	First round	Atlético Madrid	1–0[11]	1–2[12]	2–2 (a)
	Second round	Servette	2–0[13]	1–1[14]	3–1
	Third round	VfB Stuttgart	1–3[15]	0–2[16]	1–5
1989–90 Cup Winners' Cup	First round	Ikast FS	1–0[17]	2–1[18]	3–1
	Second round	Partizan	4–3[19]	1–3[20]	5–6
1991–92 UEFA Cup	First round	Rot-Weiß Erfurt	0–1[21]	0–1[22]	0–2
1992–93 UEFA Cup	First round	Vác FC-Samsung	1–1[23]	0–1[24]	1–2
1995 Intertoto Cup	Group 9	Boby Brno Unistav	—	1–2[25]	2nd
		Etar Veliko Tarnovo	3–0[25]	—
		Beveren	—	2–2[25]
		Ceahlăul	0–0[25]	—
1996 Intertoto Cup	Group 10	Gaziantepspor	1–1[26]	—	3rd
		Narva Trans	—	4–1[26]
		Vasas	1–1[26]	—
		Lierse	—	1–2[26]
1997 Intertoto Cup	Group 10	Čukarički Stankom	1–0[27]	—	2nd
		Spartak Varna	—	2–0[27]
		Gloria Bistrița	4–1[27]	—
		Montpellier	—	0–3[27]
2006–07 UEFA Cup	First round	Partizan	1–0[28]	2–4[29]	3–4
2007–08 UEFA Cup	First round	Fiorentina	1–1[30]	1–1[31]	2–2 (3–4 p)
2014–15 Europa League	2nd qualifying round	Aberdeen	1–2[32]	0–0[33]	1–2
2015–16 Europa League	Group F	Olympique de Marseille	0–3[34]	1–2[35]	4th
		Braga	0–0[36]	0–1[37]
		Slovan Liberec	0–1[38]	1–1[39]
UEFA club coefficient: No information[40]

As of 10 December 2015

As of 10 December 2015

	Country	Games	Won	Draw	Lost	Goals Scored	Goals Against	Opponents
1	Serbia[note 1]	5	3	0	2	9	10	Čukarički Stankom (1), Partizan (4)
2	Germany	4	0	0	4	1	7	Rot-Weiß Erfurt (2), VfB Stuttgart (2)
	Italy	4	1	2	1	5	7	Fiorentina (2), Inter Milan (2)
	Portugal	4	1	1	2	1	4	Braga (2), Vitória S.C. (2)
	Spain	4	2	0	2	6	4	Atlético Madrid (4)
	Switzerland	4	1	3	0	4	2	Neuchâtel Xamax (2), Servette (2)
7	Czech Republic	3	1	1	1	3	3	Boby Brno Unistav (1), Slovan Liberec (2)
	France	3	0	0	3	1	8	Montpellier (1), Olympique de Marseille (2)
	Hungary	3	0	2	1	2	3	Vác FC-Samsung (2), Vasas (1)
10	Belgium	2	0	1	1	3	4	Beveren (1), Lierse (1)
	Bulgaria	2	2	0	0	5	0	Etar Veliko Tarnovo (1), Spartak Varna (1)
	Denmark	2	2	0	0	3	2	Ikast FS (2)
	Ireland	2	2	0	0	8	2	Galway United (2)
	Romania	2	1	1	0	4	1	Gloria Bistrița (1), Ceahlăul (1)
	Scotland	2	0	1	1	1	2	Aberdeen (2)
16	Estonia	1	1	0	0	4	1	Narva Trans (1)
	Turkey	1	0	1	0	1	1	Gaziantepspor (1)

As of 10 December 2015

#	Goals	Player	Date of last goal	Competition
1	6	Mariano Bombarda	13 July 1997	1997 Intertoto Cup
2	5	Henny Meijer[41]	18 October 1989	1989–90 Cup Winners' Cup
		Peter Houtman[42]	1 October 1986	1986–87 UEFA Cup
4	4	Dean Gorré	29 June 1996	1996 Intertoto Cup
5	3	Erwin Koeman[43]	19 October 1983	1983–84 UEFA Cup
		Theo ten Caat[44]	1 November 1989	1989–90 Cup Winners' Cup