Neil Lennon's side will follow the champions route for the first time, but the chances are it will lead them to some new territory.

The Hoops will be seeded when the draw for their entry point, the third qualifying round, is made in mid-July.

Thankfully for Lennon and his Bhoys, that means they will avoid clubs of the quality of FC Basel, the Belarusians of Bate Borisov and Croatia's Dinamo Zagreb.

But lying in wait will be an eclectic mix of opponents, who, between them, will pose various and multiple problems – many of them travel and logisitcal-based.

Sheriff Tiraspol from Moldova are in line to be in the non-seeded half of the draw, along with Hungary's Debreceni, and this season's conquerors of Rangers, NK Maribor, from Slovenia.

The Latvians, FK Ventspils, are also in line to be in the hat, along with the Czechs of Slovan Liberec.

Bosman signing, Radoslaw Fojut, could be making a quick return to his Polish club, Slask Wroclaw, who defeated Dundee United this season.

HJK Helsinki would give Celtic a return to a city they already know, while Limassol would also offer easier travel options, though Cypriot football is fast becoming stronger.

Shamrock Rovers hope they can get to this round, and put themselves in with a chance of hosting a Celtic festival of football in every sense, while Ekranas from Lithuania would also welcome the Hoops fans – and a huge pay day.

Should Celtic fail to progress beyond this round, they would drop into the draw for the knockout round for the Europa League.

But if they hit the ground running – and Lennon is already focused on ensuring they do – they will be just one round away from the Cham-pions League group stage.

Standing in their way will be serious obstacles. Projected to be in the unseeded half of the knockout round draw are CFR Cluj from Romania, MSK Zilina from Slovakia, Partizan Belgrade from Serbia, plus the Bulgarian powerhouses, CSKA Sofia.

Given the choice, most Celtic fans will be hoping they can be pitched in against Helsingborgs, and not just because the Swedes appear to be the weakest of the clubs expected to be in the hat.

The Henrik Larsson connection would make it something of a pilgrimage for many supporters, and the famous No.7 would surely find his allegiances split.

If they can negotiate safe passage to the group stage, Celtic would most likely be in the bottom pot, and can still expect to make in the region of £15million, such has been the increase in guaranteed income since they last got this far, in 2008,

That cheque would be reduced if Motherwell also reached the group stage as TV revenue would then be split between the two SPL representatives.

However, Stuart McCall's side would have to defy all the odds to even survive their opening qualifying round on the non-champions path as they will not be seeded and will be in against some of Europe's serious hitters.

CSKA Moscow, Braga, Dinamo Kiev, Panathinaikos and Fenerbahce are likely to be the seeded sides.

And, even if Motherwell survive this to reach the knockout round, into the draw will come the fourth- placed side in the English Premier League.

To give you some idea of how tough it will be for the Steelmen, the likes of Udinese, Lille, Malaga and Borussia Moenchengladbach will be alongside them in the unseeded half of the draw.

So, it would be a major shock if both Scotland's hopefuls get through to fly the flag in the group stage.

It will be a leap into the unknown for most of the Motherwell players.

But Celtic can reflect on a decent Europa League campaign this season, though it has to be remembered they only got a second chance to reach the group stage against Udinese, Rennes and Atletico Madrid after Sion were thrown out for fielding ineligible players in their knockout round win over the Hoops.

Though they missed out on qualification for the next round, the experience and confidence gained in these games will be carried forward by everyone at Parkhead.

Beram Kayal believes they have laid the groundwork for bigger and better things on the European stage and reckons the team built by Lennon will only get better.

The Israeli is confident they are witnessing the start of something special and said: "We have a lot of young players and quality. We study every game and we are growing up together every day. I think, step by step, we can go to the top.

"We have a big squad and a lot of quality players. We have young players, so we just need to believe together and try to win everything, and we can do that.

"Last season we missed out on winning the league, but this season we have done it very well. I'm very happy about that because we have a strong mentality now."

That will be essential when the season kicks off for Celtic with their opening game the first of their Champions League qualifiers.

The timing puts them at a disadvantage if they are drawn against a team well into their season and their stride.

But Kayal knows there is nothing they can do about that, other than ensure their own preparation puts them spot-on.

The prospect of playing in the Champions League is one of the reasons players like Kayal opt to come to Parkhead rather than join clubs in other countries.

And the 24-year-old – the target for a big-money transfer out of Celtic before he signed a new deal then sustained a serious ankle injury at the end of December – can't wait to have another crack at joining the big boys in the group stage.

He said: "I'm happy to be here at a big club, I enjoy it, and I want to say thanks to everyone who has helped me to come back after being injured."