West Ham: Who could they face in Europa League?
Monday 22 June 2015 13:30, UK
West Ham and Celtic will learn who their upcoming Europa League and Champions League qualification opponents will be in today's draw.
Monday’s draw will decide where the Hammers will start their season in the Europa League first qualifying round, under six weeks after the end of the 2014/15 Premier League campaign.
The first round, which will take place over two legs on July 2 and July 9, could see Slaven Bilic’s top seeds face any of the 51 teams across the length and breadth of the continent, including trips to Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Gibraltar, Armenia or Georgia.
Closer to home, Welsh sides Bala Town, Newtown, Airbus UK Broughton; Ireland’s Cork City and University College Dublin or Northern Ireland’s Glentoran or Glenovan are potential opponents.
Aberdeen and St Johnstone both join West Ham in the draw for the first round, and are both seeded, while first-time Scottish Cup winners Inverness Caledonian Thistle make their debut in European competition in the second round.
Celtic will also learn who their opposition will be for their Champions League second round tie.
Trips to Macedonia, Luxemburg, Lithuania, Slovakia, Bosnia or Estonia are on the cards for the Scottish champions.
Manchester United enter at the fourth round stage, which will be drawn on August 7, with the first leg taking place on August 18.
Southampton will join West Ham in the competition in the third qualifying round draw on July 17, while Liverpool and Tottenham qualified directly for the group stage.
The second qualifying round of the Champions League is on July 14/15, with the Europa League on July 16.
The Champions League final is on May 28 at the San Siro in Milan, while the Europa League finale is on May 18 at St Jakob-Park, Basel.
Tune in to Sky Sports News HQ at 11am for live coverage of the draw
