THE UEFA Europa League will take on a new format this season as Rangers prepare to pit their wits in a competition which has created plenty of memories for supporters in recent years.
Debuting a new single league format, the draw will take place today at 12 noon in Monaco.
For those still getting to grips with the format changes in European competition this season, here is a helpful explainer below:
What is the new format?
The changes to the Europa League mirror those implemented in the UEFA Champions League, replacing the traditional 32-team group stage with a single 36-team league format.
Clubs will still be divided into four seeding pots based on their coefficient, with teams drawn to play two opponents from each pot.
Each club faces the two opponents once, with one match at home and one match away, bringing up a total of eight fixtures.
The top eight teams in the league table will advance directly to the last 16, while sides finishing between 9th and 24th will compete in a two-legged play-off for the right to join them.
Please also note that all UEFA competitions are self-contained under the new format, meaning teams who finish 25th and below will be eliminated entirely from European competition.
From there, the winners of the eight two-legged ties will make up the remainder of the last 16 teams.
The tournament will then take on a traditional knockout format, with two-legged ties taking the competition towards a single-leg final.
This year’s final will take place on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at the Estadio de San Mamés in Bilbao, Spain.
Who can Rangers face?
Rangers will enter the draw in Pot One, with the pot placement for the league stage draw as follows:
Pot One
AS Roma (ITA)
Manchester United (ENG)
FC Porto (POR)
Ajax (NED)
Rangers (SCO)
Eintracht Frankfurt (GER)
Tottenham (ENG)
Lazio (ITA)
Slavia Prague (CZE)
Pot Two
Real Sociedad (ESP)
AZ Alkmaar (NED)
Braga (POR)
Olympiacos (GRE)
Olympique Lyonnais (FRA)
PAOK (GRE)
Fenerbahce (TUR)
Maccabi Tel Aviv (ISR)
Ferencvaros (HUN)
Pot Three
Qarabag (AZE)
Galatasaray (TUR)
Viktoria Plzen (CZE)
Bodo/Glimt (NOR)
Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL)
Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)
Ludogorets (BUL)
Midtjylland (DEN)
Malmo (SWE)
Pot Four
Athletic Club (ESP)
Hoffenheim (GER)
Nice (FRA)
Anderlecht (BEL)
FC Twente (NED)
Besiktas (TUR)
FCSB (ROM)
FK RFS (LAT)
Elfsborg (SWE)
When will the matches be played?
The two extra matchdays required to facilitate the new format will be accommodated after the new year.
The match rounds will take place as follows, with the confirmed order of the matches set to be revealed by UEFA in the days following this afternoon’s draw:
Matchday 1: 25/26 September, 2024
Matchday 2: 3 October, 2024
Matchday 3: 24 October, 2024
Matchday 4: 7 November, 2024
Matchday 5: 28 November, 2024
Matchday 6: 12 December, 2024
Matchday 7: 23 January, 2025
Matchday 8: 30 January, 2025