Hapoel Beersheba Set for Champions League Qualifying Draw

Israeli champions Hapoel Beersheba will be drawn on Wednesday into the second qualifying round of the Champions League, where their European campaign begins. The first match is scheduled for July 21 or 22, and the qualifying phase runs through August 25 or 26.

Beersheba will enter the draw as a seeded team, thanks to its results in European competitions over the past five years, which should give it a more favorable matchup. If it reaches the third qualifying round, it will no longer be seeded and would face a tougher draw.

If Beersheba is eliminated in the second qualifying round, it will drop into the Europa League. A loss there would send it into the Conference League. In any case, the club needs to win just one qualifying round to secure a league phase in one of UEFA’s competitions and guarantee an international season.

Possible opponents in the second qualifying round include Danish champion AGF Aarhus, Swiss champion Thun and Swedish champion Mjällby. Other rivals will come from the winners of the first qualifying round, where teams such as Kazakhstan’s Kairat and Romanian champion Universitatea Craiova are also in the mix.