Celtic manager Neil Lennon says it the NextGen Series is a great initiative and is delighted that his club is involved.
The NextGen Series is a European football club cup competition for footballers under the age of 19 and is similar in form to the UEFA Champions League. It will provide an opportunity for top youth players to test their wares against other top young European footballers.
Lennon says that it is great for the development of all players involved and indicated that it will benefit Celtic greatly.
"We're very pleased to be involved in the NextGen Series. We believe it is a tournament which will give our young players the perfect opportunity to develop," he said.
"Playing in such a competitive environment against players from the best clubs across Europe can only be an excellent experience and I am sure it is something which can only bring real benefits to our players and to the club."
The setup of the competition is 16 teams total, sorted in to four groups, with each group playing each other twice both home and away. The top two teams in each group progress through to the knockout phase.
Celtic have been drawn in Group 1 alongside Barcelona, Manchester City and Marseille. The other three groups are as follows:
Group 2 - Liverpool, Molde, Sporting CP, Wolfsburg Group 3 - Ajax, Aston Villa, Fenerbahce, Rosenborg Group 4 - FC Basel, Inter Milan, PSV Eindhoven, Tottenham
