UEFA gaffe sees Hibs named in Champions League draw

Scottish side Hibernian found themselves named in the draw for the Champions League third qualifying round after a mistake by UEFA.

The Edinburgh-based club, who finished first in Scotland’s second tier last season, were included in the graphic showing Friday’s full draw that was tweeted by European football’s governing body.

UEFA named Hibs as the opponents for Red Bull Salzburg, having mistakenly added them instead of Hibernians of Malta. The tweet was promptly deleted.

Neil Lennon’s outfit saw the funny side, though, sending a reply to UEFA that read: “Thanks for including us this late in qualifying. Maybe just slot us into the group stages though?”

UEFA’s German language account responded with an apology for the “tagging mistake”, after Hibs had flagged the error.

Thanks for including us this late in qualifying. Maybe just slot us into the group stages though? 

— Hibernian FC (@HibsOfficial) July 14, 2017