Hull City midfielder Jake Livermore believes that the Europa League is starting gain more respect as a competition.
The Tigers have reached the tournament for the first time in their history following their appearance in last season's FA Cup final, where they were narrowly defeated by Arsenal.
Livermore feels that the competition is beginning to be held in higher esteem by the bigger clubs in Europe and he has admitted that he can't wait for his side's first match.
He is quoted as saying by The Mirror: "I think people are starting to take it a bit more seriously now. And that's why it's an even greater achievement for Hull to get there. In my time at Tottenham, I played against some massive clubs and in massive stadiums in that competition.
"We went to the San Siro and squeezed past Inter Milan to reach the last eight in March 2013 and that was a fantastic occasion.
"Now it will be great for our fans, the gaffer Steve Bruce and all the players to go and experience that sort of thing."
Hull take on Slovakian side Trencin in their qualifying game on Thursday.
Simon Sinclair
