Hearts Face Fenerbahce Route; Rangers Draw Bialystok
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- Hearts face Fenerbahce or Gornik Zabrze in the Champions League third qualifying round if they beat Sturm Graz, with the first leg Tuesday night and the return at Tynecastle Park on July 25; defeat would drop them into the Europa League against the St Gallen vs Benfica winner.
- Hearts haven't appeared in Champions League qualifying since 2006-07, when they lost in the third qualifying round to AEK Athens — nearly two decades ago.
- Rangers begin their Europa League campaign against Poland's Jagiellonia Bialystok; defeat would send them into the Conference League for the first time.
- Motherwell and Hibernian will discover their Conference League third qualifying round opponents when the draw is made Monday afternoon.
- If Motherwell beat Faroese side Havnar Boltfelag, their potential opponents include LNZ Cherkasy/Gent, Besiktas/FC Midtjylland, HJK Helsinki/Coleraine, Twente/Ferencvaros, or RFS/Vestri.
- Hibs meet Kosovan side KF Malisheva in Conference League qualifying, with potential next-round ties including NK Bravo/KF Shkendija, FC Santa Coloma/SK Rapid, Rakow/Valetta, NK Rijeka/Derry City, or FC Polissya/FC Copenhagen.
Why it matters: Hearts' potential meeting with Fenerbahce represents their first Champions League qualifying appearance in nearly two decades, with their last outing ending in a 2006-07 third-round loss to AEK Athens. For Rangers, a Europa League defeat against Bialystok would mark their first-ever Conference League campaign — a notable drop from Europe's second tier.
