When is the Champions League draw, how can I watch it & who are Dundalk and Linfield's potential opponents?

The draw for the first qualifying round of the Champions League takes place in Nyon on Tuesday afternoon with Dundalk and Linfield set to find out their opponents.

The League of Ireland and Irish League champions could draw one another in what would be a prelude to the inaugural Unite the Union champions cup in November.

The draw at UEFA HQ in Switzerland will see Dundalk seeded in Group 3, while Linfield are unseeded in the same pot.

Potential opponents for Vinny Perth in his first European game as head coach could pit them against Linfield, Valur Reykjavik of Iceland, Riga of Latvia and Toshavn of the Faroe Islands.

The nightmare draw, however, would see Dundalk paired with Polish Ekstraklasa winners Piast Gliwice, who won the league for the first time last season and have little European pedigree.

Of their five potential opponents, only Linfield have faced League of Ireland opposition in Europe before, most recently going down 2-1 on aggregate to Cork City in 2016.

The two sides have actually faced before, in the 1979-80 European Cup preliminary round, which the  Lilywhites won 3-1 on aggregate.

The Blues’ home leg was switched to Haarlem in the Netherlands following riots from the visiting fans at the first leg, when the sides drew 1-1 in Oriel Park.

Linfield’s potential opponents include heavyweights BATE Borisov of Belarus and Rosenborg of Norway.

Slovenian champions Maribor are regular participants in the Europa League group stages, while HJK Helsinki of Finland and Wales’ the New Saints represent more manageable top seeds.



What time is the draw?

Tuesday, June 18th, 1.30pm Irish time.

Where is it?

UEFA HQ, Nyon, Switzerland.

Where can I watch or stream it online?

The draw will be streamed online via UEFA.com.



What are the possible draws for the Irish clubs.

Group 3 (seeded sides in bold)

BATE Borisov (BLR)

Maribor (SVN)

Rosenborg (NOR)

HJK Helsinki (FIN)

Dundalk (IRL)

The New Saints (WAL)

Winners of the preliminary round

Piast Gliwice (POL)

Valur Reykjavík (ISL)

Linfield (NIR)

HB Tórshavn (FRO)

Riga (LVA)

    About Extratime Team

    The in-house extratime.com team of writers View Full Profile