The Scottish Cup again holds the key to European qualification (2025)

Certain Scottish Cup final combinations could have big consequences for several Scottish clubs come the end of the season

So now we getting to the business end of the season and the prizes are being handed out.

Celtic beat Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup in December and now the Scottish Cup final line-up has been decided.

The Hoops, who are champions elect, will feature once again after the 5-0 trouncing of St Johnstone at Hampden, while Aberdeen booked their place with a narrow 2-1 win over Hearts.

Jimmy Thelin and Co will look to fair much better than in the League Cup semi-final where Brendan Rodgers' men ran out 6-0 winners.

It was the start of a dramatic downturn in form for the Reds after a blistering start to the campaign. They will want to put that right.

As trophy glory calls for both clubs, so does the allure of European football next season with fans desperate to planning head for adventures on the continent whether it is Champions League, Europa League or Conference League.

So, Record Sport takes a look at the Euro places on offer and how the Scottish Cup will impact who qualifies.

Who will qualify for Europe this year?

Scottish football has five places in total for the 25/26 European season after predominately Rangers but also Celtic boosted the coefficient in UEFA competitions.

The Old Firm have already clinched places in the Champions League thanks to their positions in the top two of the league.

The other four teams in the Scottish Premiership's top six - Hibernian, Dundee United, Aberdeen and St Mirren - are competing for three spots in the Europa and Conference Leagues.

Scottish Premiership Euro spots:

• 1st - Champions League (Play-off round)
• 2nd - Champions League (Second Qualifying Round)
• 3rd - Europa League (Second Qualifying Round)
• 4th - Conference League (Second Qualifying Round)

How does the Scottish Cup impact Euro qualification?

The winners of the Scottish Cup are handed the fifth Euro place, which is the Europa League at the play-off round. It is the last round before the group phase.

Had St Johnstone or Hearts reached the final, they could still have claimed the place awarded to the cup winners.

However, the showpiece will see Aberdeen face Celtic at Hampden on May 24.

If the Dons upset the Hoops and clinch the cup then they would be given the second Europa League spot awarded to Scotland. Straight forward stuff.

However, if Celtic claim the trophy once again there would be a rejig of the Premiership qualification model.

As Brendan Rodgers' men have already qualified for the Champions League their place in the Europa League would be void.

So, the spot would go to whoever finishes third in the Premiership, where Hibs currently reside.

As a result the qualification places would be bumped down one place.

So fourth place would be upgraded from Conference League second qualifying round to the Europa League second qualifying round, with the Conference League spot going to fifth place.

And there is good news for those teams eliminated during the Europa League qualifying phase.

The team eliminated in the second or third qualifying round will drop down into the Conference League qualifiers while the team eliminated in the play-off will head straight to the Conference group stage.

The teams currently 1st-5th in Scotland will be in Europe next season. Unless Aberdeen win the cup and finish 6th It will be the first time these five teams have entered Europe together since 1989.

Who is going to make it?

St Mirren are unlikely to make it into the top five places which is where they need to be for a shot at a Euro spot.

But Stephen Robinson's side were over the moon just to make it into the top six in the last game before the split.

That means Hibs, Dundee United and Aberdeen are all fighting for third place - which would mean just one round to overcome to make it into the Europa League group stage and the lucrative prize money on offer.

Hibs are in pole position but the Edinburgh club and The Tangerines may be wishing for a Celtic cup win, which would give an extra league spot of Europa League football.

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