The first semi-finals of the Belarus Football Cup will be held in Grodno and Novopolotsk

March 23, Minsk /Igor Khadasevich – BELTA/. The draw for the semi-final pairs of the 2008-2009 Belarus Cup took place today at the House of Football in Minsk. This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by the press service of the Belarusian Football Federation (ABFF). In the first semi-finals, which will take place on April 9, Grodno's Neman will host Soligorsk's Shakhtyor, and in Novopolotsk, the local Naftan will play against BATE Borisov. The return matches for a place in the final will be held on April 22 in Soligorsk and Borisov. The winners of the semi-final duels will compete for the honorable trophy on May 31 in the final match at the Dinamo stadium in the capital. Of the quartet of current semi-finalists, three teams have previously won the Belarus Cup – Neman (in 1993), Shakhtyor (2004), and BATE (2006). It should also be noted that in last year's final, Soligorsk players lost to Minsk MTZ-RIPO with a score of 1:3. The winner of the current cup competition will have the right to represent Belarus in the Europa League (this tournament will replace the current UEFA Cup). If BATE players win the Belarus Cup, then as the champions of Belarus in 2008, they will play in the Champions League, and the finalist will get into the Europa League. -0-