UPDATE – Shamrock Rovers fixtures confirmed (all times Irish)
Oct 3rd: v Apoel (h), 8.0; Oct 24th: v Larne (a, Windsor Park), 5.45; Nov 7th: v The New Saints (h), 5.45; Nov 28th: v Rapid Vienna (a), 8.0; Dec 12th: v FC Borac (h), 8.0; Dec 19th: v Chelsea (a), 8.0.
Shamrock Rovers will face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge six days before Christmas in the Uefa Conference League group stages in a meeting that is sure to spark a scramble for tickets to squeeze a festive Irish contingent into the 40,000 capacity ground.
Rovers are entitled to 4,000 tickets or 10 per cent of the stadium capacity. The Hoops’ other European trips send them to Windsor Park to face Larne on October 24th and Rapid Vienna at the 24,000 capacity Allianz Stadion on November 28th.
The all-Ireland derby will pit Derry brothers Aaron and Jordan McEneff against each other.
The new Conference League format also gives Stephen Bradley’s side three matches in Tallaght and they will open their campaign against Cypriot side Apoel on October 3rd, with Welsh champions The New Saints the visitors on November 7th and Borac from Bosnia and Herzegovina on December 12th.
In 1978 John Giles and Eamon Dunphy featured for Rovers in a 2-0 defeat of Apoel in a Cup Winners’ Cup tie at Glenmalure Park.
Another special European night is promised against Chelsea, the two-time Champions League winners, with Enzo Maresca’s current squad valued at €1.05 billion to Rovers €4.28 million, according to transfermarkt.com.
Aside from that unique occasion, Bradley will target progress to the knock-out stages and a further windfall of €800,000 on top of the €3.17 million banked for qualification. Uefa also pay out €200,000 for reaching the playoffs, €400,000 for each win and €133,000 for a draw.
Should Rovers finish in the top eight of 36 competing clubs, they go directly into the Last 16 on March 6th and 13th. If ranked ninth to 24th, they must play a two-legged playoff on February 13th and 20th, which would significantly shorten their off-season.
All six Rovers group games will be live on Premier Sports between October 3rd and December 19th, as the Dublin-based subscription channel has exclusive rights to the Conference League in Ireland. However, TNT can also broadcast any European game.
The early rounds are October 3rd and 24th, with the last four games coming after the League of Ireland season ends on November 1st.
Alongside Rovers, Larne host Gent of Belgium and Swiss side St Gallen at Windsor Park. The Co Antrim club, managed by Tiernan Lynch, reached the group stages for the first time after a dramatic 3-1 defeat of Gibraltar’s Lincoln Red Imps at Inver Park on Thursday night.
Like Rovers, Larne are guaranteed at least €3 million in prize money, significantly more than St Patrick’s Athletic earning €750,000 for reaching the Conference playoffs, where they lost to Istanbul Basaksehir 2-0.
After an abysmal domestic campaign, certainly by Rovers high standards, they sit fifth in the table, a point behind Waterford and Sligo Rovers albeit with two games in hand. If they win their 10 remaining league fixtures, they would finish on 69 points, three shy of last season’s title-winning return. Only the top three and FAI Cup winners qualify for European action next summer.
In 2022 Bradley was compelled to prioritise the pursuit of a third successive league title, as Derry City were on their heels. Over the Conference group stages leading goal scorer Rory Gaffney was benched for three games against Gent (Belgium), Djurgardens (Sweden) and Molde (Norway). Rovers only picked up two points, drawing at home to Djurgardens and Gent.
Two years later, they have improved the squad by re-signing Danny Mandroiu on a short-term deal and keeping Ireland under-21 striker Johnny Kenny on loan from Celtic.
The club’s dispute with RTÉ remains ongoing after Rovers refused to accept the national broadcaster and FAI announcement that the fixture in Tallaght against Sligo Rovers on September 13th will be televised live.
“Shamrock Rovers was made aware of the intention of RTÉ TV to broadcast our next home league game on September 13th by the league communications office this morning,” read a statement on Thursday. “The club is considering its position on the matter.”
Rovers’ long-running issue with RTÉ was exacerbated by the national broadcaster not providing live coverage of the recent European qualifiers due to budgetary constraints caused by covering Euro 2024, the Olympics and the Paralympics.
