The Second Qualifying Round deciders are done, and this week the twelve winners step into the Third Qualifying Round — the last stop before UEFA's play-off round and, for the clubs that go all the way, a place in the newly expanded 36-team league phase. As with the earlier rounds, the tie is split across two paths: the Champions Path, made up of domestic title-winners from lower-ranked associations, and the League Path, reserved for high-finishers from countries that send multiple entrants into Europe's top club competition.

The financial gap this round bridges is enormous. Reaching the play-off round alone locks in a significant UEFA participation payment, while a place in the league phase itself is worth many times more than most of these clubs' annual domestic broadcast deals — which keeps markets on both the outright tie winners and the total-goals lines well populated among bettors following the smaller European leagues. With the play-off draw having taken place on Monday, August 3, the shape of the final hurdle before the group stage is already set for whoever wins this week's ties.

There is no away-goals rule under UEFA's current format, so any tie still level on aggregate after normal time in next week's second legs goes to extra time and, if required, penalties. Losers at this stage aren't finished for the season either — they simply drop into the Europa League qualifying picture instead.

When: Third Qualifying Round First Legs Tuesday, August 4 & Wednesday, August 5 · Second Legs Tuesday, August 11 · Play-off Round from Tuesday, August 18

With the new Premier League season still a couple of weeks away and La Liga and Ligue 1 also yet to open, this week's midweek friendly card gives fans one more look at sides shaping up for the campaign ahead. Arsenal travel to Dublin to face Real Betis at the Aviva Stadium, a useful gauge for Mikel Arteta's squad ahead of home friendlies against Borussia Dortmund and Como before the Community Shield meeting with Manchester City on August 16.

Over in Spain, RCD Mallorca host Paris Saint-Germain at the Estadi Mallorca Son Moix, with Luis Enrique's side using the trip as another building block before their own PSG–Manchester United friendly and the UEFA Super Cup date with Aston Villa. Further afield, Manchester City continue their Asian tour with a game against the K-League All-Stars in Seoul, a step on the way to City's meeting with Atlético Madrid in the same city on August 9, ahead of Pep Guardiola's own Community Shield assignment against Arsenal.

Friendlies naturally carry less weight than competitive fixtures, but with new signings, fresh systems and squad fitness all still being tested, this week's fixtures give an early read on form heading toward the season openers — useful context for anyone building outright and early-season markets.

Key Fixtures: Arsenal vs. Real Betis — Wed, Aug 5, Dublin · RCD Mallorca vs. Paris Saint-Germain — Wed, Aug 5, Palma · Manchester City vs. K-League All-Stars — Wed, Aug 5, Seoul

The men's leg of the National Bank Open presented by Rogers — a mandatory ATP Masters 1000 event — is well underway in Montreal, and this week is where the tournament really takes shape. Heavy rain washed out most of Sunday's schedule, pushing a backlog of matches into Monday, when Jack Draper, Gaël Monfils and Stefanos Tsitsipas all featured on Center Court and Matteo Berrettini opened play against Mariano Navone on an outer court.

With Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic and an already-injured Carlos Alcaraz all missing from the men's field for a second straight year, top seed Alexander Zverev heads a draw that also features home favourite Félix Auger-Aliassime as the second seed and defending champion Ben Shelton at three. That gap at the top opens the door for the chasing pack — Daniil Medvedev, Alex de Minaur, Flavio Cobolli and Taylor Fritz among them — to bank ranking points and title momentum heading into the US Open.

As the rain-hit schedule clears through the week, expect the Round of 16 and quarterfinal matches to fall across Wednesday through Friday, with the semifinals and final following into the weekend — the stretch where match-odds and set-betting markets typically see the most action.

When: Montreal Tournament Window August 1 – 13 · Main Draw Play Underway Since Sunday, August 2 · IGA Stadium, Montreal