Göteborg face Moldovan test

The draw for the qualifying round of the 2002/03 UEFA Cup has taken place at the NOGA Hilton in Geneva.

Deserved success
Before the draw the 82 clubs in the hat for the qualifying round were divided into ten groups, in accordance with UEFA's coefficient ranking list. In each case a seeded team was then paired with an unseeded team.

Former winners
Two-time UEFA Cup winners IFK Göteborg, who lifted the trophy in 1982 and 1987, will start their bid for a third crown against Moldovan side FC Zimbru Chisinau. Meanwhile, Ipswich Town FC, winners in 1981, will face Luxembourg's FC Avenir Beggen after securing a place in the draw via the Fair Play rankings despite their relegation from the English FA Premiership.

Servette to face Armenians
Swiss side Servette FC, who knocked Hertha BSC Berlin and Real Zaragoza out of last season's UEFA Cup, will face FC Spartak Yerevan of Armenia, while NK Varteks, who accounted for former European champions Aston Villa FC in 2001/02, will play FAI Cup winners Dundalk FC from the Republic of Ireland.

Tel-Aviv hope for more heroics
Israeli side Hapoel Tel-Aviv, who performed such heroics in reaching the quarter-finals of last season's UEFA Cup, will face KS Partizani of Albania, while Myllykosken Pallo-47 of Finland square off with Denmark’s Odense BK in an all-Scandinavian tie. Aberdeen FC, former winners of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Super Cup, were drawn against FC Nistru Otaci of Moldova.

European debuts
Scottish side Livingston FC, will make their European debut against FC Vaduz of Liechtenstein. FK Atyrau and FC Kairat Almaty, the first-ever Kazakh representatives in the competition, drew ŠKM Púchov and former European champions FK Crvena Zvezda respectively. Portuguese non-league side Leixões SC, who qualified after reaching the final of the Portuguese Cup, will face F.Y.R. Macedonian outfit FK Belasica GC.

Match dates
The first legs of the qualifying round will be played on 15 August while the return matches have been scheduled for 29 August. The draw results are confirmed as all fixture reversals have been made in accordance with the competition regulations.