SCOTLAND could be looking at having six teams knocked out at involved in the first stage of European competition next season.
And Aberdeen is set to be guaranteed a Europa League place if things stay as they are in UEFA and the SPL's respective Fair Play leagues.
Scotland sits in third place in the UEFA Respect Fair Play league, and if that is still the case in May, the SPL will receive one of the three extra Europa League places.
And with Aberdeen currently the cleanest side in the league (see table, below), the Dons would automatically benefit from the extra place.
Here is the Europa League (formerly UEFA Cup) places definitively explained (are you reading BBC Sport?)... Deep breath...
The third and fourth-placed teams in the SPL enter the Europa League qualifying stages alongside the Scottish Cup winners.
If two of the teams who finish in the top four reach the Scottish Cup final, the European place will be awarded to whoever finishes fifth in the SPL.
The Scottish Cup winners will enter at the play-off round with the third-placed team in the third qualifying round and the fourth-placed side entering at the second qualifying round stage.
If the Dons qualify for Europe and boast the best disciplinary record, the fair play place will be awarded to the next best team which has not already secured European football. If an SPL team qualify via the fair play rating, it will begin its European campaign at the first round which begins on July 2.
The Europa League, which replaces the Uefa Cup, will have 48 clubs in 12 groups of four, with the top two in each joining the eight third-placed clubs from the Champions League in a 32-club knock-out stage.
| SPL Disciplinary Table 08/09 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team | R | Y |
| Aberdeen | 1 | 38 |
| Hibernian | 1 | 39 |
| Inverness CT | 1 | 40 |
| Dundee Utd | 1 | 41 |
| Celtic | 2 | 29 |
| Kilmarnock | 2 | 60 |
| Motherwell | 3 | 30 |
| St Mirren | 3 | 33 |
| Rangers | 3 | 36 |
| Hamilton | 5 | 40 |
| Falkirk | 5 | 41 |
| Hearts | 6 | 34 |
