In the Fair Play ranking, which determines the country that owns one additional direct berth in the UEFA Cup and the participants in the draw for two more places in the first qualifying round of this tournament, Ukraine at the end of 2004 turned out to be among those who scored more than 8 points. This means that for the second year in a row we have a chance to enter three clubs in the second-ranked continental tournament.
Let us recall that in the fair play competition, the disciplinary record of clubs in European competitions and national teams of various ages in international competitions in the period from June 1, 2004 to May 31, 2005 is taken into account. Each country will be represented by the national leader in the Fair Play competition, and if this club qualifies for Europe directly, then by the next one after it.
Last year, it was in exactly this way that "Illichivets" made it into Europe, and what is most interesting is that it is still our main contender, since the best indicators are held by "Dynamo" and "Shakhtar", which will most likely play in European tournaments. The main competitors of the Mariupol side are "Tavriya", "Zakarpattia", "Vorskla-Naftohaz".