June 15, 2021 - Dinamo and Valur from Iceland will meet in the first round of the Champions League qualifiers after a draw decided the pairs on Tuesday. 

Dinamo found out about their opponent in the first round of the Champions League qualifiers, reports Index.hr.

The Croatian champion will play against Icelandic club Valur in the 1st qualifying round. Other potential rivals were Northern Ireland's Linfield, Maltese Hibernians, and one of the four clubs playing the preliminary round: Folgore (San Marino), Pristina (Kosovo), HB Torshavn (Faroe Islands), or Inter Club d'Escaldes (Andorra).

Valur last played in Europe in the 2019/2020 season, when they were eliminated by Slovenian club Maribor 5:0 in the Champions League, and then lost 5:1 in the Europa League against Bulgarian club Ludogorets. The season before that, the Icelandic representative reached the third qualifying round of the Europa League and lost to the Moldovan club Sheriff because of an away goal. 

Transfermarkt estimates the value of Valur at three million euros, and the most expensive footballer is the Danish striker Patrick Pedersen (400 thousand euros). Valur also has three footballers who have registered appearances for the national team. Birkir Mar Saevarsson played 98 games for Iceland, goalkeeper Hannes Thor Halldorsson defended in 76 games for the Iceland national team, and Kaj Leo Bartalsstovu wore the Faroe Islands jersey 27 times.

The draw for the second qualifying round, also in Nyon, will take place on Wednesday, starting at 12:00. Dinamo will then find out who they will play should they beat Valur. 

The first match of the 1st Champions League qualifying round will be played on July 6 or 7, while the return match is scheduled for July 13 or 14. Dinamo hosts the first game.

Due to great results in Europe in recent seasons, the Croatian champion will be the leader in all qualifying rounds.

Pairs:

Fola Esch (Luxembourg) - Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar)
Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) - Shamrock Rovers (Ireland)
Malmö FF (Sweden) - Riga (Latvia)
Bodo Glimt (Norway) - Legia Warsaw (Poland)
Connah's Quay Nomads (Wales) - Alashkert (Armenia)
HJK Helsinki (Finland) - Buducnost Podgorica (Montenegro)
CFR Cluj (Romania) - Borac Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Shkendija (Northern Macedonia) - Mura (Slovenia)
Teuta (Albania) - Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova)
Dinamo Tbilisi (Georgia) - Nefchi Baku (Azerbaijan)
Maccabi Haifa (Israel) - Kairat (Kazakhstan)
Ludogorets (Bulgaria) - Shakhtar Soligorsk (Belarus)
Ferencvaros (Hungary) - winner of the preliminary round
Žalgiris (Lithuania) - Linfield (Northern Ireland)
Flora Tallinn (Estonia) - Hibernians (Malta)
DINAMO ZAGREB (CROATIA) - Valur (Iceland)

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