All Eur answers

The full list of qualifiers for the second qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League is now complete.

This afternoon’s Belgian Play-Off Final saw Cliftonville’s 2007 Intertoto Cup opponents KAA Gent overcome Genk to book the last of the 43 available Seeded slots, and complete a busy weekend of action involving a couple of other previous continental foes.

On Friday night, 2008 UEFA Cup conquerors Copenhagen defeated Randers to seal their place via the Danish Play-Offs, however CSKA Sofia – whom the Reds met on Europa League duty in 2010 – were beaten by city rivals CSKA 1948 in the Bulgarian equivalent.

Gent and Copenhagen therefore join AEK Larnaca and DAC as the four entrants to the second qualifying round who have past history with Cliftonville, but what of the other 39 Seeded teams?

As anyone who has been keeping a regular check of our European Guide will attest, an element of mystery is likely to remain right up until the draw on Wednesday, June 19 – and possibly even thereafter, as is outlined in the simplified explainer below.

What round will Cliftonville enter the competition at?
Cliftonville will enter the 2024/25 UEFA Conference League at the second qualifying phase.

When is the draw?
The draw for the second qualifying round will take place in Nyon, Switzerland, on Wednesday, June 19.

Will Cliftonville be Seeded or Unseeded for the draw?
Cliftonville’s UEFA Coefficient of 2.000 means we will be Unseeded for the draw.

When will the matches be played?
The first and second legs of the second qualifying round are currently scheduled for July 25 and August 1 respectively, however these dates remain subject to change and supporters are warned against making any travel arrangements until advised to do so by the Club, especially given that Cliftonville’s entry at the second qualifying phase presents an increased likelihood of fixture conflicts.

Are the dates for the first and second legs set in stone?
No. All aspects of second qualifying round matches are subject to change. The potential exists for Belfast to have three teams participating in the second qualifying round and, alongside any requirement to avoid fixture conflicts in the city, UEFA will also be mindful of similar clashes occurring in the home cities of our opponents (or the opponents of Crusaders and Linfield), meaning that the order of home and away legs could be reversed and that matches may be switched to new dates entirely, with the same principles also applying with regards live broadcast or streaming agreements.

Will Cliftonville’s opponents definitely be confirmed on the day of the draw?
Not necessarily. Cliftonville could be forced to wait until as late as a week before the first leg until our opponents are known. This will be the case if we are paired with the winners of a first qualifying round tie.

Are all 43 Seeded teams in the second qualifying round draw now known?
No. There are currently 33 teams whose places are confirmed, with the total set to be completed by 10 winning sides from the first qualifying round.

Who are the 33 Seeded second qualifying round entrants that are definitely confirmed as possible opponents for Cliftonville?
AEK Athens (Greece)
AEK Larnaca (Cyprus)
Ararat (Armenia)
Astana (Kazakhstan)
Austria Wien (Austria)
Banik Ostrava (Czechia)
Basaksehir (Turkey)
Brondby (Denmark)
CFR Cluj (Romania)
Copenhagen (Denmark)
DAC (Slovakia)
Dnipro-1 (Ukraine)
Djurgarden (Sweden)
Fehervar (Hungary)
Go Ahead Eagles (Netherlands)
Hajduk Split (Croatia)
Hapoel Be’er Sheva (Israel)
KAA Gent (Belgium)
Legia Warsaw (Poland)
Maccabi Haifa (Israel)
Mlada Boleslav (Czechia)
Olimpija Ljublana (Slovenia)
Omonia (Cyprus)
Osijek (Croatia)
Riga (Latvia)
Spartak Trnava (Slovakia)
St Gallen (Switzerland)
St Mirren (Scotland)
Universitatea Craiova (Romania)
Vaduz (Liechtenstein)
Vitoria de Guimaraes (Portugal)
Zrinjski (Bosnia-Herzegovina)
Zurich (Switzerland)

Can Cliftonville be drawn against a team that has won a first qualifying round tie?
Yes. There is approximately a one-in-five chance of this happening. The winners of the first qualifying round matches involving B36 Torshavn (Faroe Islands), Breidablik (Iceland), Buducnost (Montenegro), Dinamo Tbilisi (Georgia), Dudelange (Luxembourg), KuPS (Finland), Linfield (Irish League), Partizan (Serbia), Shkendija (North Macedonia) and Zalgiris (Lithuania) will be Seeded for the second qualifying round and could therefore, with the exception of Linfield and their opponents, be drawn against Cliftonville.

Can Cliftonville be drawn against a team that has a lost a first qualifying round tie in the Europa League?
No. Though six defeated teams from the first qualifying round of the Europa League will drop into the second qualifying round of the Conference League, they will all be Unseeded and therefore cannot be drawn against Cliftonville.

How will teams from the first qualifying round be incorporated into the draw for the second qualifying round?
Ahead of the second qualifying round draw on June 19, UEFA are expected to divide all 86 participating teams into smaller pots of four and five. Each pot will contain an identical amount of Seeded and Unseeded entrants, a number of which will carry over from the first qualifying round draw, which occurs the previous day.

Will the draw be regionalised?
As outlined above, UEFA will divide the teams into geographically-linked pots just before the draw takes place, however the arbitrary nature of the process means there are no reliable indicators of which entrants will and won’t be included in Cliftonville’s region.

How do UEFA regionalise fixtures that include one of two teams progressing from the first qualifying round?
For the purposes of the second qualifying round draw, it is assumed that all Seeded teams in the first qualifying round will win their ties, with UEFA regionalising the process accordingly. However, should the Unseeded team (who may be based outside Cliftonville’s natural region) cause an upset by winning, the possibility exists for the Reds to therefore face a team from literally anywhere in Europe.