Celtic’s path to the Champions League group stage now hinges on a two‑legged showdown with Austria’s champions LASK, while Brighton & Hove Albion will try to secure a place in the UEFA Conference League after a play‑off clash against either CFR Cluj of Romania or Norway’s Tromsø. The draws for the play‑off rounds of the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League were conducted on Monday, revealing the opponents for a host of Scottish clubs, including Rangers, Hearts, Hibernian, Motherwell and Larne, as they each chart their routes through Europe this season. Martin O’Neill’s Celtic will host the first leg of their tie against LASK on either August 18 or 19, with the return fixture scheduled for August 25 or 26.
The stakes are high: the loser of the tie will drop into the Europa League group stage, giving the Scottish side a safety net if they fail to progress in the premier competition. The Austrian side, fresh from a domestic title win, will be eager to test themselves against a club that has a long tradition of European participation. Brighton, who finished eighth in the Premier League last term, have been paired with the winner of a preliminary tie between CFR Cluj and Tromsø.
The Glover‑Stoke partnership will host the second leg of the tie, with the first leg taking place on August 20 and the decisive return match on August 27. This schedule places the south‑coast club’s European fixture directly between their opening league game against Aston Villa on August 23, a match that will be broadcast live on Sky Sports. Should Brighton prevail, they will join the Conference League group stage and continue their continental campaign. In Scotland, Rangers and Hearts have also learned who they will face if they win their third‑round qualifying matches.
Rangers, under Derek McInnes, travel to Poland for the first leg against Jagiellonia Białystok on Thursday, with the return leg set for the following week. A victory would see them drawn against either Northern Irish champions Larne or Georgian side Iberia 1999 in the Europa League play‑off round, with the first leg slated for August 20 at Ibrox.
If Larne were to lose that tie, they would drop into the Conference League play‑offs, where they could meet the winners of a match between Lincoln Red Imps and Omonia. Hearts, who fell into the Europa League after a Champions League exit, have been drawn against either AGF Aarhus of Denmark or Sabah of Azerbaijan. The first leg will be played at Tynecastle Park on August 20, with the return leg on August 27. However, before reaching that stage, Hearts must first overcome Benfica in the third‑round qualifier, a tie that sees them travel to Portugal for the opening leg on Thursday and return to Scotland for the second leg the following week.
Both clubs have asked for the postponement of their domestic fixtures that fall between potential European play‑off legs, meaning Rangers’ match against St Mirren and Hearts’ away trip to Falkirk will be rescheduled to avoid a congested calendar. Motherwell’s European adventure could see them face German side Freiburg – the 2022 Europa League runners‑up – in the Conference League play‑off round, provided they defeat HJK Helsinki in the third qualifying round. Alfred Johansson’s Motherwell will travel to Helsinki on Wednesday for the first leg, with the return leg at Fir Park on August 13. Hibernian have a similar route: if they beat KF Shkëndija, they will meet either IFK Göteborg or Gent in the Conference League play‑offs.
Hibs will host Shkëndija on Thursday, with the second leg scheduled for August 13, aiming to secure a spot in the play‑off stage that runs on August 20 and 27. The broader picture of the play‑off landscape includes a long list of match‑ups across Europe, spanning clubs from the Balkans, Scandinavia, the Iberian Peninsula and beyond. Some of the highlighted pairings are: - Levski Sofia or Kairat Almaty versus AEK Athens - Dinamo Zagreb or Kauno Žalgiris against Viking FK - Mjällby or Slovan Bratislava versus Ararat‑Armenia or Celje - Hapoel Be’er Sheva or Red Star Belgrade against AGF Aarhus or Sabah - Fenerbahçe or Sturm Graz versus Sparta Prague or Lyon - Olympiakos or NEC Nijmegen against Union Saint‑Gilloise, Bodø Glimt - Trabzonspor versus Ferencváros or Górnik Zabrze - KuPS Kuopio or Universitatea Craiova versus Ararat‑Armenia or Celje - Sint‑Truiden versus Lincoln Red Imps or Omonia - Shamrock Rovers or Egnatia versus Lillestrøm - Jagiellonia Białystok or Rangers versus Larne or Iberia 1999 Tbilisi - Lech Poznań or KI Klaksvík versus Thun or Vikingur Reykjavík - Benfica or Hearts versus AGF Aarhus or Sabah - OFI Crete versus Maccabi Tel Aviv or CSKA Sofia - And many more intricate pairings that illustrate the depth and diversity of this season’s secondary European competitions. These fixtures will determine which clubs advance to the group stages of their respective tournaments and which will be relegated to lower tiers, ensuring that every match carries significant weight.
For the Scottish clubs, the outcomes will shape their European calendars for the coming months, influencing travel, squad rotation and financial rewards. For Celtic and Brighton, the immediate focus is on preparing tactically and physically for their upcoming ties, knowing that success will not only bring prestige but also vital revenue and the chance to compete against some of Europe’s most storied teams. Overall, the play‑off draws have set the stage for a thrilling early‑season period in European football, with clubs from across the continent poised to battle for a coveted spot in the group phases of the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League. Fans can look forward to a series of high‑stakes encounters that will test the depth of squads, the acumen of managers and the resilience of teams as they strive to extend their continental journeys.