Irish sides find out Euro fate as Champions League football returns to Tallaght Stadium

A general view of Tallaght Stadium during the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division match between Shamrock Rovers and Finn Harps. Picture: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Shamrock Rovers will progress straight to the third qualifying round of the Uefa Champions League if they can navigate a tricky tie against Slovakian double-holders Slovan Bratislava.

Slovan clinched their third title in a row last season but slipped out of both the Champions and Europa League competitions at the first hurdle.

Rovers, back at the European top table for the first time since 2012, will host the Slovakians at Tallaght Stadium on either July 6 or 7 before travelling away seven days later.

Slovan, as the ninth highest among the 32 seeded teams and featuring Slovak internationals Dominik Greif and Vladimír Weiss, will start with the favourites' tag but Rovers have an added incentive to cause a shock. Theirs was one of the ties handed a bye in the second round during today’s draw in Switzerland.

The third qualifying round is the precursor to a play-off, which decides the final entrants into the lucrative group stages into the Champions League.

Should Stephen Bradley’s side be eliminated, they have the fallback of a spot in the third qualifying round of the Europa Conference League.

That new, third club competition under Uefa’s umbrella will have FAI Cup winners Dundalk, along with Bohemians and Sligo Rovers as Ireland’s first round representatives.

Despite their current struggles, the Lilywhites will fancy their chances against Welsh side Newtown.

Bohemians and Sligo Rovers both face first-leg trips to Iceland on July 8. Sligo are up against FH Hafnarfjordur, who Dundalk beat in 2016 along their run to the Europa League stages, while the Gypsies' long wait for their return to the European stage sees them meet Stjarnan.

The return legs take place on July 15.