Hammarby to face Anderlecht as Swedish teams learn UEFA competition opponents

The Stockholm club, partly owned by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, finished second in Allsvenskan last season, earning them a spot at this stage of Europe's second-tier competition.

Hammarby will host the first leg, scheduled for Thursday 23rd July, before travelling to Brussels for the return leg a week later on 30th July. The winners will advance to the Third Qualifying Round, where they will be unseeded in the draw.

It will be an early test for Henrik Rydstrom, recently appointed as Hammarby head coach after Bajen sacked Kalle Karlsson at the start of this month following a run of four defeats in five matches across all competitions.

A good omen for Hammarby is that they were victorious against Belgian opposition last season, knocking Charleroi out of the UEFA Conference League (UECL) at the Second Qualifying Round stage, though they were then beaten by Rosenborg in the next round.

Mjallby heading to Gibraltar or Andorra

Mjallby's Strandvallen home looks modest compared to most grounds hosting UEFA Champions League football in 2026/27, but it dwarfs the potential venues the Allsvenskan champions will visit on their first European away trip.

In the Second Qualifying Round, Mjallby will face the winner of the opening round tie between Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar and Inter Club d'Escaldes of Andorra, both of whom play at grounds holding fewer than 2,500 fans.

But what they lack in capacity, they make up for in European experience - the Andorran side has secured wins over FCSB and Hibernian in recent seasons, while the Red Imps reached the UECL League Phase last season, where they beat Lech Poznan and Sigma Olomouc.

The first leg will be in southern Sweden on Tuesday 21st or Wednesday 22nd July, before MAIF head to one of Europe's microstates on Tuesday 28th or Wednesday 29th July for the second leg. Potential Third Qualifying Round opponents will be known by the time the first leg kicks off.

GAIS await Danes; Wales or Estonia for Goteborg

Gothenburg's two representatives in the UECL are both starting their campaigns in the Second Qualifying Round and are both due to host first legs on Thursday 23rd July. With both GAIS and IFK Goteborg sharing Gamla Ullevi, one of their fixtures will be moved to another date, likely in the same week.

GAIS' long-awaited return to European competition sees them take on Danish opposition in the form of Nordsjaelland, while Goteborg will face the winners of the First Qualifying Round tie between Caernarfon Town of Wales and FCI Levadia of Estonia. The second legs are set for 30th July.