Celtic have only appeared in the Champions League group stage or league phase in three of the last eight seasons, forced to settle for Europa League football in the other campaigns. Each time, thanks to Scotland's high coefficient ranking at the time, they qualified automatically. Thus, the Hoops have not successfully negotiated Champions League qualifying since 2017, dumped out by AEK Athens, CFR Cluj, Ferencváros, Midtjylland and Kairat Almaty subsequently.
Standing in their Celts' way this summer is LASK. The Bhoys were drawn against the Austrian Bundesliga champions at UEFA headquarters in Nyon on Monday morning, which will certainly not be an easy task. Later in the day, UEFA confirmed the dates and kick off times for the fixtures, so here is everything you need to know.
Celtic vs LASK: Confirmed dates and kick off times
- First leg: Wednesday 19 August. Parkhead, Glasgow. Kick off 8pm (BST).
- Second leg: Tuesday 25 August. Raiffeisen Arena, Linz. Kick off 8pm (BST).
Despite being the seeded side, Celtic will be at home in the first leg. This was randomly determined during the draw.
What TV channels will Celtic vs LASK be on?
In the UK, all UEFA Champions League matches are broadcast by TNT Sports, apart from one game on Tuesdays, with Amazon Prime Video getting first pick of all matches on a Tuesday.
Thus, with no other British clubs involved in the play-off round, TNT Sports 1 and HBO Max will broadcast the first leg in Glasgow, while the second leg in Linz will be live on Amazon. In the United States, matches will be available on CBS Sports and Paramount+ as well as Stan Sport in Australia.
What is the full Champions League play-off round schedule?
Matches played on 18 and 26 August
- GNK Dinamo Zagreb or Kauno Žalgiris vs Viking.
- Levski Sofia or Kairat vs AEK Athens.
- Fenerbahçe or Sturm Graz vs Spara Prague or Olympique Lyonnais.
Matches played on 19 and 25 August
- Celtic vs LASK.
- Olympiacos or NEC Nijmegen vs Royale Union Saint-Gilloise or Bodø/Glimt.
- Hapoel Be'er Sheva or Crvena zvezda vs AGF or Sabah.
- Mjällby AIF or ŠK Slovan Bratislava vs Ararat-Armenia or Celje.
How good is Celtic's record vs Austrian clubs?
- Matches Played:Â 13.
- Celtic Wins: 3. Draws: 3. Austrian Clubs Wins: 7.
- Celtic Goals Scored: 21. Celtic Goals Conceded: 28.
Celtic's previous results vs Austrian clubs
- 1977 European Cup round 2: Celtic 2-1 Wacker Innsbruck & Wacker Innsbruck 3-0 Celtic.
- 1984 Cup Winners' Cup round 2: Celtic 3-0 Rapid Wien & Celtic 0-1 Rapid Wien.
- 1997: UEFA Cup round 2 qualifier: Tirol Innsbruck 2-1 Celtic & Celtic 6-3 Tirol Innsbruck.
- 2010 Europa League Group C: Celtic 1-1 Rapid Wien & Rapid Wien 3-3 Celtic.
- 2014 Europa League Group B: RB Salzburg 2-2 Celtic & Celtic 1-3 RB Salzburg.
- 2018 Europa League Group D: RB Salzburg 3-1 Celtic & Celtic 1-2 RB Salzburg.
- 2025 Europa League league phase: Celtic 2-1 Sturm Graz.
Put succinctly, Celtic's record against Austrian clubs is not impressive, winning only three of 13 encounters previously. October's comeback 2-1 victory over Sturm Graz, in which quick-fire goals from Liam Scales and then Benjamin Nygren snatched the points, was their first win over an Austrian outfit in the 21st century, coming at the seventh attempt.
Well, having been handed, arguably, the toughest possible draw in Nyon on Monday, Martin O'Neill's team will need to be at their best to get into the league phase of Europe's top-tier competition.
Who did other Scottish clubs draw in European play-offs?
Heart of Midlothian
If Hearts beat Benfica in the Europa League third qualifying round, Wouter Vrancken's team will face the losers of the Champions League tie between Sabah (Azerbaijan) and AGF (Denmark).
If Hearts lose, they will drop into the Conference League and face the winners of Rapid Wien (Austria) vs Paide Linnameeskond (Estonia).
Rangers
If Rangers beat Jagiellonia Białystok in the Europa League third qualifying round, Derek McInnes' side will be up against the winners of Larne (Northern Ireland) vs Iberia 1999 (Georgia).
If Rangers are beaten, the Gers drop into the Conference League play-off round, where they will find the winners of Jablonec (Czech Republic) vs FK RFS (Latvia).
Motherwell
If Motherwell beat HJK Helsinki in the Conference League third qualifying round, Alfred Johansson's team will meet Freiburg (Germany) in the play-off round. The Bundesliga side reached last season's Europa League Final.
Hibernian
If Hibernian overcome KF Shkëndija in the Conference League third qualifying round, David Gray's team will take on either IFK Göteborg (Sweden) or KAA Gent (Belgium) in the play-offs.
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