Old foes, iron stoves, and yo-yos: Meet Hibs' potential Europa Conference League opponents

Hibs have learned their potential Europa Conference League third qualifying round opponents – provided they can take care of Inter Club d’Escaldes first.

Lee Johnson’s side travel to Andorra this Thursday before hosting the Primera Divisió outfit at Easter Road on August 3. The reward for the winners of the second qualifying round encounter will be a tie against Djurgårdens IF of Sweden, or Swiss Pro League side FC Luzern. But what can Hibs expect from their possible opponents – and who are they?

Djurgårdens IF

Founded by dockyard workers in in March 1891 as a sports club, the football department didn’t follow until nearly ten years later when in July 1899, Djurgårdens played their first ever match – a 2-1 loss against city rivals AIK.

Djurgårdens line up ahead of a Europa Conference League clash with Lech Poznań at the Tele2 Arena in March 2023. Picture: Michael Campanella / Getty Images

It didn’t take long for success to arrive with four league titles and eight cup wins between 1910 and 1920. A Scotsman named John Maconnachie is listed as Djurgårdens first official head coach. A versatile defender who had played for Hibs between 1903 and 1907, he scored nine goals in 93 appearances before joining Everton. He guested for Shelbourne and Djurgårdens during the war before taking the reins at Djurgårdens for a short period.

Djurgårdens won the Allsvenskan title four times during the 1950s and 1960s and during this spell met Hibs in the inaugural European Cup, losing at the quarter-final stage. This period also gave rise to their Järnkaminerna nickname. Translating as ‘the iron stoves’, the term is thought to refer to the club’s physical style of play. They yo-yo’d between the 1970s and 1990s, but since the Millennium have won the top flight on four occasions, most recently in 2019.

They are jointly-managed by Kim Bergstrand and Tolle Lagerlöf. Notable former players include Niklas Gunnarsson, who won the Scottish Cup with Hibs, as well as Gösta Sandberg, who made 328 appearances as well as managing the men’s and women’s teams and representing the club at ice hockey. More recently Kim Källström and 133-cap Sweden goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson were on the club’s books.

Djurgårdens play home games at the Tele2 Arena, sharing with Hammarby, and are currently fourth in the Allsvenskan with 17 games played.

A general view of FC Luzern's Swissporarena home ground. Picture: Bebu / Wikimedia Commons

FC Luzern

Another multi-sports club, Luzern’s football arm is ages with Djurgårdens, having been founded in August 1901 – although there had been attempts to establish a club since the late 1860s. Like Djurgårdens, their first official match also ended in a 2-1 defeat, with SC Zofingen victorious.

A quintessential ‘yo-yo’ club, they hold the dubious record of the highest number of promotions and relegations from the Swiss top flight since 1933. They have won the Super League just once – in 1988/89, very much against the odds. They won the Swiss Cup in 1991/92 and again in 2020/21 after first winning it in 1059/60. In Europe, Luzern have won just seven matches in total and lost to St Johnstone on penalties during Europa League qualifying in 2014/15.

Notable former players include ex-Swiss internationalists Stephan Lichtsteiner, Hakan Yakin, and Kubilay Türkyilmaz as well as ex-Hearts midfielder Oliver Bozanic and legendary former Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, and Switzerland boss Ottmar Hitzfeld.

Die Leuchten are currently managed by ex-Liechtenstein striker Mario Frick, who took charge in December 2021. They play at the 16,800-capacity Swissporarena, which has been home since 2011.