OGC Nice have now made up their minds. Competing in the Champions League for the first time since 2017, the club from the Côte d’Azur now know their opponents for the third preliminary round of the star-studded competition.
And it will be Benfica that the Aiglons, who finished fourth in Ligue 1 last season, will be looking to get the better of at the start of August in the hope of contesting a play-off round later that month.
Having been drawn first, Nice will travel to Lisbon to take on Benfica on 12 August. The first leg will have taken place a week earlier at the Allianz Riviera.
Should they be eliminated at any stage, Franck Haise’s men will still be guaranteed a place in the Europa League league phase in September. A competition that did them no favours last year, they finished 35th and penultimate after recording three draws and five defeats.
