Rangers in the Europa League: When is the draw, possible opponents, new format, fixture dates

Philippe Clement's side succumbed to a 3-1 aggregate defeat to the Ukrainians in the Champions League third qualiyfing round following Tuesday’s 2-0 second leg defeat at Hampden but will drop straight into the group stages of the Europa League.

Rangers are among the top seeds for the UEFA's second tier competition thanks to their club coefficient – which was boosted by their run to the Europa League final two years ago – but can still come up against fellow pot one sides in a newly revised format for the 2024-25 campaign.

Like the Champions League, the Europa League will now feature 36 clubs in a single league format, with each club drawn against two opponents from each of the four pots, playing a total of eight matches home and away. Each team will play against a maximum of two opponents from any other country.

The top eight in the table advance directly to the round of 16 while sides finishing from ninth to 24th will contest the knockout round play-offs, with the victors going through to the last 16. Teams finishing 25th and below will be eliminated from European competition.

Rangers could face Battle of Britain clashes against Manchester United or Tottenham – and a possible renewed rivalry with ex-Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou – while Dynamo Kyiv could be possible opponents if they fail to qualify for the Champions League through the play-offs.

When is the Europa League group phase draw?

Rangers will find out their opponents for the Europa League group phase when the draw is made on Friday, August 30, 2024.

Rangers' possible Europa League opponents

The Ibrox side are one of 17 teams who have qualified for the Europa League group stages alongside Roma, Manchester United, Porto, Eintracht Frankfurt, Lazio, Tottenham Hotspur, Real Sociedad, AZ Alkmaar, Olympiacos, Lyon, Fenerbahçe, Union Saint-Gilloise, Athletic Bilbao, TSG Hoffenheim, Nice and FC Twente.

The rest of the teams will be known following the conclusion of the Champions League and Europa League play-off rounds. Those projected to make it through based on their seeding are: Ajax, Braga, Lille, PAOK Salonika, LASK Linz, Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Ferencvaros, Qarabag, Galatasaray, Molde, Viktoria Plzen, Bodo/Glimt, Dynamo Kyiv, Ludogorets, Midtjylland, Partizan Belgrade, Malmo, APOEL Nicosia, Anderlecht.

Europa League fixture dates

Europa League fixtures will primarily take place on Thursday evenings, with the exception of a limited number of matchday one fixtures scheduled on Wednesday, September 25. Rangers will hope to be back playing at Ibrox by then with home matches currently taking place at Hampden due to delayed stadium works.

Matchday 1: September 25/26, 2024

Matchday 2: October 3, 2024

Matchday 3: October 24, 2024

Matchday 4: November 7, 2024

Matchday 5: November 28, 2024

Matchday 6: December 12, 2024

Matchday 7: January 23, 2025

Matchday 8: January 30, 2025

Play-off round: February 13 and 20, 2025

Round of 16: March 6 and 13, 2025

Quarter-finals: April 10 and 17, 2025

Semi-finals: May 1 and 8, 2025

Final: May 21, 2025

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