Osasuna will not participate in the Conference League, the third-level championship for European football clubs, next season after the Spanish club said on Tuesday that it was excluded from the competition by the decision of the European Union “UEFA” due to a match-fixing scandal ten years ago.
Osasuna qualified for the preliminary round in the European Conference League after finishing seventh in the Spanish First Division last season, but it was involved in a match-fixing scandal in the 2013-2014 season.
Under the rules of “UEFA”, any team involved in match-fixing since April 2007 can be excluded from the next European competition to which it qualifies, while Osasuna has not reached any European competition since the 2006-2007 season.
UEFA’s decision means that Athletic Bilbao, eighth in the Spanish League, will play the preliminary round of the European Conference, and the first leg will be held on August 24.
The preliminary rounds for the conference league in the 2023-2024 season will start next week.
Osasuna confirmed in a statement that he will continue to study his legal options to be able to play in Europe next season.
