The first leg of Larne’s Europa League qualifying tie against FC Iberia 1999 is scheduled for Tuesday at Inver Park, with a 20:00 BST kick-off. However, the match faces potential postponement due to travel complications affecting the visiting Georgian squad.
FC Iberia 1999 was unable to land in Northern Ireland on Monday as planned, citing paperwork difficulties related to their chartered flight. The team is now expected to arrive in the country only on Tuesday afternoon, creating a scheduling conflict with established competition protocols.
Under Uefa regulations, teams are required to arrive in a host country no fewer than 24 hours before their scheduled match. Given the Georgian side’s delayed arrival, they would have insufficient time to meet this requirement if the game proceeds as planned, potentially providing grounds for requesting a postponement.
Larne, FC Iberia 1999, and Uefa have been contacted for statements on the situation. The second leg of the tie is scheduled to take place in Tblisi on 11 August at 17:00 BST. The winner of the qualifying tie will advance to face either Scottish Premiership side Rangers or Jagellonia Bialystock of Poland, while the losing team will be relegated to the final qualifying round of the Uefa Conference League.
Larne previously made history by becoming the first Irish Premiership side to qualify for the league phase of a European competition in 2024 when they reached the Uefa Conference League.
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