Heart of Midlothian will be guaranteed European group-stage football if they secure third place, and earn upward of £5million in the process, following Aberdeen's loss to Celtic on penalties in the Scottish Cup semi-final on Saturday afternoon.

If Celtic or Rangers were to win the trophy the team that finishes third in the Premiership will take the cup winners' spot in the Europa League play-off in August (first-leg 22nd, second-leg 29th). The alternative is Hearts defeating Rangers on Sunday in the second semi-final and then Celtic in the final to win the trophy.

READ MORE: How Hearts can beat Rangers and end Hampden hoodoo at long last

Hearts currently hold an 11-point lead over Kilmarnock and therefore require five points from their five top-six fixtures to secure third spot. But they can wrap it up next Saturday when they travel to Rugby Park. A win would open up a 14-point gap with just 12 points left to play for.

Steven Naismith's men can finish no lower than fourth and will compete in Europe for three seasons running for the first time in the club's history. But third place is the goal in the league.

Entering at the Europa League play-off round, as they did last season, will see the team drop down to the Conference League group stage if they lose, or progress to the Europa League group stage if they win. If it is the latter the team would play at least 10 games compared to eight in the Conference League due to a format change.

Scotland's Coefficient explained the new format in a thorough breakdown for Hearts Standard (An updated version will be published once third place is secure) and the financial benefits that come with it.

Last season, Hearts were defeated by FC Zurich in the Europa League play-off before playing Fiorentina, Istanbul Basaksehir and RFS of Latvia. And the financial accounts from last year showed the club "generated in excess of £5m of revenue".