Scotland's two representatives in the Women's Champions League qualifiers, Hearts and Rangers, are bracing themselves for demanding assignments as they launch their continental campaigns this week, both under new management following an eventful summer.
Hearts arrive in Denmark for their maiden European venture having claimed a surprise Scottish Women's Premier League title, sealed on the final day of the season. That triumph, however, came at a cost, with head coach Eva Olid stepping down after growing frustrated by a lack of financial backing at the club. Olid is reportedly close to being appointed Manchester United manager. Her successor, Andy Thomson, previously assistant at title rivals Rangers, takes charge without significant squad reinforcements. Defender Ebonie Locke has arrived on a short-term loan from Birmingham City, but the Edinburgh club have lost Northern Ireland midfielder Joely Andrews to city rivals Hibernian.
Hearts open their qualifying mini-tournament on Wednesday against Lithuanian champions Gintra, a side well accustomed to European qualifiers having won their domestic title every year since 2005. Gintra currently top the 2026 Moteru A Lyga after 12 matches, riding a run of three consecutive victories, and previously defeated Celtic 2-0 in a qualifying final they hosted in Lithuania two seasons ago. Despite their pedigree, Gintra have never advanced beyond these mini-tournaments, having lost last year's final to Ukraine's Vorskla Poltava after eliminating Romania's Farul Constanța in the semis.
Should Hearts progress, they would meet either hosts HB Koge or Latvia's Riga in Saturday's final. Riga, chasing a third straight domestic title and currently three points behind leaders RFS with games in hand, have already dispatched two British clubs this qualifying campaign, beating both Glentoran and Wrexham by 4-1 scorelines. Koge, however, are expected to be the stronger side overall, boasting a squad strengthened by American investment and featuring Denmark internationals Rikke Madsen, Mille Gejl and Simone Boye, alongside former Manchester City player Nadia Nadim and Republic of Ireland striker Kyra Carusa. Koge previously reached the Champions League group stage in the 2021-22 season.
Rangers, meanwhile, are looking to bounce back from a disappointing campaign in which they lost out on the league title and were beaten by Celtic in the Scottish Cup final. The Glasgow club also saw Scotland midfielder Mia McAulay depart for Aston Villa, though they have brought in seven new faces, including full-back Kirsty Smith from Nottingham Forest. Leanne Crichton remains head coach and has now officially confirmed her brother Colin as her assistant, replacing Thomson.//p>
Rangers face the tougher 'league path' route to the Champions League, which typically pits them against clubs from higher-ranked footballing nations. That path proved costly two years ago when they were thrashed 6-0 by Arsenal before losing 3-0 to Atletico Madrid in the third-place play-off. There is more encouraging history from four years earlier, when Rangers beat Ferencvaros and PAOK before narrowly losing to Benfica in the second round.
This time, Rangers begin at home at Broadwood Stadium against Slavia Prague, runners-up in the Czech league and a squad containing six Czech internationals and four Slovak caps. Victory would set up a clash with the winner of Ajax against Brondby. Ajax have recently signed Netherlands striker Katja Snoeijs from Everton and still boast Sherida Spitse, the most-capped player in European football history with 248 international appearances. Ajax reached the Champions League quarter-finals in 2024 but lost 1-0 to Fiorentina in a qualifying final two years ago. Brondby, semi-finalists in 2015, have strengthened with the additions of Scotland's Amy Rodgers from Forest and Denmark forward Amalie Thestrup from Charlton Athletic.
Crichton has expressed confidence in her revamped squad, saying she believes she has added "excitement, pace, energy, goals, robustness and quality" heading into the new campaign, though it remains uncertain whether her side will be playing in Saturday's final at Petershill Park or the third-place play-off at Broadwood.
Based on reporting from BBC Sport Football.