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STV News
5 days ago
- Sport
- STV News
When do Scotland's representatives start their European campaigns?
Aberdeen's Scottish Cup triumph at Hampden didn't just end the Dons' long wait for the trophy and spark wild celebrations, it also finalised Scotland's European representatives for next season. Jimmy Thelin and his players were already assured of a place in UEFA competition. But the penalty shoot-out victory settled which competition they start in, and how other clubs are affected. With five teams flying the flag for Scotland across three competitions, we've broken down the path to group stage football and the challenges that face our teams. SNS Group GLASGOW, SCOTLAND – MAY 17: Celtic lift the trophy at full time during a William Hill Premiership match between Celtic and St Mirren at Celtic Park, on May 17, 2025, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group) Becoming champions of Scotland again means Celtic are in the Champions League once more, but this year there is no direct entry to the League Phase of the competition. Brendan Rodgers' side showed real progress in the competition under the new format last season, setting up a dramatic and memorable head-to-head with Bayern Munich in the knock-out stage. This time around, Celtic will need to come through a two-legged tie to reach the elite stage, with Scotland's coefficient meaning our title winners enter at the play-off stage. The good news is that Rijeka's title win in Croatia has nudged Celtic into the seeded side of the draw, theoretically making the task a little easier. Celtic's return to European action begins with the first leg of the play-off on August 19/20, with the second leg a week later. The draw for the play-off round takes place on August 4. SNS Group GLASGOW, SCOTLAND – MAY 14: Rangers' Nicolas Raskin (L) celebrates scoring to make it 3-1 with teammates Cyriel Dessers and Mohamed Diomande during a William Hill Premiership match between Rangers and Dundee United at Ibrox Stadium, on May 14, 2025, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Rob Casey / SNS Group) Rangers endured a season to forget domestically, but the bright spot was a thrilling run to the quarter-finals of the Europa League. That journey began after a dramatic, and controversial, loss to Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League third qualifying round at Hampden saw them drop down a tier in European competition. As Premiership runners-up, Rangers get another crack at the Champions League this time around but they will; have to go through three rounds of qualifying to reach the glamour and the money of the League Phase. The Ibrox club, who will be under new management and new ownership, will start in the second qualifying round, with the first leg on July 22/23 and the return match a week later. With only six teams in the League Path of qualifying at that stage, and Rangers among the seeds, they already know their three possible opponents. Greek side Panathinaikos, Swiss league runners-up Servette, or Norwegians Brann Bergen could be heading to Ibrox and the draw will take place on June 18. Rangers would be seeded if they progress to the third qualifying round, where Fenerbahce and Nice are already confirmed as possible opponents, along with the winners of ties involving Red Bull Salzburg and Viktoria Plzen. Reaching the play-off round, the Ibrox side would no longer be seeded and would face one of two possible teams. Standing in wait would be the winners of the ties involving Benfica and Club Brugge. If the team lose in Champions League qualification at any stage, the picture becomes a little more complicated. Losing in the Champions League second qualifying round would put Rangers in the Europa League third qualifying round, where seeding isn't guaranteed. The team would have to get through that tie and a play-off round to make the competition proper and have hopes of emulating or bettering last season's run deep into the tournament. Disappointment in the Europa League would still bring the consolation of another chance at group stage football via the Conference League. A Europa qualifying exit would mean entering in the next stage of Conference qualifying. So a second round defeat in Europa League qualifying would mean a place in the third round of the Conference League. Losing the Europa League play-off would mean direct entry into the Conference League group stage. The only way Rangers could fail to have League Phase football would be to exit Champions League qualifying, lose in the Europa League qualifiers before the play-off stage and then lose a two-legged Conference League qualifier or play-off. All eyes will be on the top competition though, and Rangers will be keenly awaiting the Champions League second qualifying draw in just three weeks' time. SNS Group ABERDEEN, SCOTLAND – MAY 24: Aberdeen Manager Jimmy Thelin is pictured leading the celebrations during the Aberdeen bus parade to celebrate winning the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup, on May 24, 2025, in Aberdeen, Scotland. (Photo by Mark Scates / SNS Group) A slump at the end of an up-and-down Premiership campaign had Aberdeen drop to fifth in the table and contemplating Conference League qualifiers if they failed to deliver an upset in the Scottish Cup final. Fast forward one week and a tense penalty shootout at Hampden, and Aberdeen fans were not only celebrating a cup triumph but also the fact that they had guaranteed group stage football in Europe. Jimmy Thelin's side enter Europa League qualifying just one two-legged tie away from the League Phase, significant prize money and some undoubted glamour ties. Seeding hasn't yet been settled for that stage but regardless of how it works, Aberdeen will face a tough task. Six teams will have dropped down from Champions League qualifying as possible opponents and teams of the level of PAOK or Braga could have made it to that stage. The consolation is that even defeat would see Aberdeen drop straight into the Conference League and a guaranteed six games. Europa League remains the main target and the Red Army will be eagerly awaiting the play-off round draw on August 4 and that return to Europe in the first leg of the tie on August 21. SNS Group EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND – MAY 17: Hibs fans during a William Hill Premiership match between Hibernian and Rangers at Easter Road Stadium, on May 17, 2025, in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Sammy Turner / SNS Group) An incredible resurgence in the second half of the season under David Gray saw Hibs climb to third in the table and were it not for Aberdeen's Hampden glory, the Easter Road side would have been the ones celebrating guaranteed group stage football. Instead, Hibs will begin in the second qualifying round of the Europa League on July 24 and have to come through three ties to reach the competition proper. Gray's side will be unseeded when the draw takes place on June 18 and while the full list of teams they could face has yet to be confirmed, Braga and Anderlecht are already known possible opponents, demonstrating the scale of the task. Exit at any stage of Europa League qualifying would mean going into the next round of Conference League games, meaning there's plenty of possibility for the Easter Road side to have a long European campaign even if they don't have success initially. SNS Group DUNDEE, SCOTLAND – MAY 17: Dundee United fans on the pitch at full time during a William Hill Premiership match between Dundee United and Aberdeen at the CalForth Construction Arena at Tannadice Park, on May 17, 2025, in Dundee, Scotland. (Photo by Roddy Scott / SNS Group) Dundee United enjoyed a thrilling end to the Premiership season when they defeated Aberdeen and leapfrogged them into fourth place on the final day of the season, but the Dons had the last laugh when their Scottish Cup triumph bumped their rivals into the Conference League instead of the Europa League. That pain will have faded some by the time the qualifiers come around, and United will be hoping to make the most of a competition that's designed to be accessible to clubs across the continent. Jim Goodwin's side go into the second qualifying round, and will need to win three ties to bank six guaranteed League Phase games. But the names in Conference League qualification, at least in the early stages, are not as stellar as the bigger competitions. United will be seeded for their first tie, and among the many possible opponents from Europe's smaller leagues are names like Dungannon Swifts, Drogheda United, AIK and MSK Zilina. If the Tannadice side get through, they'll be unseeded in the third qualifying round as the competition heats up. At that stage, United would face the winners of ties including AZ Alkmaar, Sparta Prague and Maccabi Haifa. Defeating one of those teams would secure progress to the play-off stage where the opposition could vary from teams who have come through qualifying like United, or the bad luck of facing one of the top teams like Nottingham Forest, Fiorentina or Strasbourg. What is certain, is that United will kick off their European campaign on July 24, and the identity of their opponent will be known on June 18. There's one other important piece of fixture news to remember this year. While the domestic season will be under way by the time any of our teams are taking part in the crucial play-off ties, the SPFL has taken a step to help. Each team will now have permission to postpone one league match to aid their preparations when they are one step away from the group stages. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Scotsman
25-04-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Bulls get revenge over Glasgow Warriors but late bonus point salvaged could prove crucial
South Africans avenge URC final defeat at Scotstoun Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The Bulls had been warned that they were coming to 'the slaughterhouse' at Scotstoun but they emerged unscathed, winning 26-19 to move within a point of their hosts in the United Rugby Championship standings. Glasgow Warriors' Tom Jordan (c) looks dejected at full time after the defeat to Bulls. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group) | SNS Group Glasgow Warriors may have been beaten but they finished strongly to secure a precious bonus point against the South African visitors. Franco Smith's side remain second with two rounds of fixtures remaining in the regular season but the Bulls are hot on their heels. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Away games against Benetton and Leinster await Glasgow while the Bulls are at home to Cardiff and the Dragons. Whoever finishes second will have home advantage in the play-off semi-finals, should they qualify. Glasgow Warriors' Tom Jordan (c) looks dejected at full time after the defeat to Bulls. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group) | SNS Group A bit of a grudge had built up around this fixture after Glasgow defeated the Bulls 21-16 in last season's URC final in Pretoria. Jake White, the Bulls' World Cup-winning coach, said the date of the rematch had been 'written on the wall' since pre-season. He then rowed back, shutting down all talk of revenge. But this would have been a highly satisfying night for White. His team blunted Glasgow's formidable attack, were ferocious in defence and, in Johan Goosen, they had a deadly accurate goalkicker who could punish their opponents' indiscipline. Goosen landed four penalties and converted both Bulls tries, by Johann Grobbelaar and David Kriel. The game slipped away from Glasgow in the fatal third quarter. They conceded 20 unanswered points from the end of the first half to the midpoint of the second but they finished with a flourish and the late tries from Kyle Steyn and Stafford McDowall could prove crucial in the final reckoning. The Warriors actually outscored the visits by three tries to two, with Jamie Dobie touching down in the first half. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It wasn't enough, however, and George Horne conceded there is much work still to be done. 'It was a massively physical game and fair play to them, they put in a lot of big shots,' said the Warriors scrum-half who kicked two conversions. 'We're still one point ahead. Massive two games coming up, we'll do our best to win both of them and then see what happens. We're guaranteed a quarter here at Scotstoun. After that, anything can happen. 'We'll have to get a lot better. We showed tonight that we're not as good as some people think we are. A lot of work to be done.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Warriors' Kyle Steyn scores a second half try against the Bulls. (Photo by Calum Chittleburgh / SNS Group) | SNS Group Glasgow were largely frustrated during an attritional opening half. They had to wait until the 35th minute for the game's opening try but even that wasn't enough to give them the half-time lead. Goosen, with three first-half penalties, made sure it was the visitors who were ahead at the break, 9-7. Whether that was a fair reflection of the opening 40 minutes was open to debate. Glasgow were the team trying to play the most rugby but they found themselves running into something akin to a brick wall. The tackling was fierce. Canan Moodie almost chopped Sebastian Cancelliere in half at one point but Wilco Louw took it too far in the 26th minute when he led with his shoulder into the head of Patrick Schickerling. Louw got away with a yellow card and the Bulls prop at least had the decency to apologise to Schickerling as the Glasgow loosehead went off for an HIA. Happily, he was able to return. The Bulls were already 6-0 ahead by that point, courtesy of Goosen's boot. Gregor Brown had to go off after 24 minutes and Kyle Rowe made way for Dobie 10 minutes later. The substitute's impact was immediate. With Louw still in the sin-bin, the Warriors won a series of penalties and kicked to the corner. The ball was worked wide, with McDowall's looped pass finding Dobie in the corner to score. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It looked forward and referee Andrew Brace checked it on the big screen. Fortunately for Glasgow, the pass had deflected off the hand of Moodie so the try was good. Horne nailed the conversion but Glasgow's lead was short-lived as Goosen put over his third penalty in the 39th minute. Things quickly unravelled for the Warriors in the second half. Jordan missed touch with a penalty which would have taken Glasgow up to the Bulls line and worse was to follow for the stand-off as the home side conceded 20 points in a row. Bulls' Marco van Standen (R) celebrates after Johan Goosen scores a second half try. (Photo by Calum Chittleburgh / SNS Group) | SNS Group Johann Grobbelaar scored the Bulls' second try, peaking off the side of a lineout maul and forcing his way past Jordan, McDowall and Sione Vailanu. Goosen converted then added a fourth penalty to stretch the Bulls' lead to 19-7. Jordan then endured his horror moment. A long, speculative punt upfield from Sebastian de Klerk should have been dealt with by the fly-half but he seemed sluggish to the ball and dithered long enough for de Klerk to rob him on the floor and pop the ball up for the supporting Kriel to score. Goosen converted and Glasgow were trailing 26-7 going into the final quarter. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
