Following the second leg matches of the 2026-2027 Champions League play-off round on the evening of 25/8, Sabah, Bodo/Glimt, and LASK were the first teams to qualify after dramatic scenarios. The remaining four berths will be decided on the evening of 27/8.

LASK players celebrate after the LASK – Celtic match in the Champions League play-off second leg at Raiffeisen Arena, Linz, Austria on 25/8/2026. *Photo: Reuters*

LASK secured their place in the Champions League group stage for the first time in their history after a stunning comeback against Celtic on home soil in Austria. Coach Martin O’Neill's side entered the second leg with a 3-0 aggregate lead from the first leg and further extended their advantage in the first half through Callum McGregor's goal. However, the hosts did not give up hope. Moses Usor equalized at 1-1 in the first half, before Robert Ljubicic made it 2-1 early in the second half.

Riding on this momentum, LASK reduced the aggregate deficit to 3-4 just 10 minutes later with a curling shot from Samuel Adeniran. In second-half stoppage time, Florian Flecker headed into the net against the Scottish representative, bringing the aggregate score level and forcing extra time. There, Adeniran scored again with a low shot in the 109th minute, securing a thrilling 5-4 aggregate victory.

Meanwhile, Bodo/Glimt qualified for the Champions League for the second consecutive season with a convincing 3-0 victory over Nijmegen. Over the two legs, they won 6-1 on aggregate.

N.E.C. Nijmegen player Freek Entius (center) in a challenge against Andreas Helmersen and Sondre Auklend (left) of Bodo/Glimt during the Champions League play-off second leg at Aspmyra Stadion, Bodo, Norway on 25/8/2026. *Photo: AP*

In Baku, two extra-time goals from Orphe Mbina and Joy-Lance Mickels helped Sabah qualify for the group stage for the first time in their history after a fateful match. Trailing 1-2 from the first leg, Sabah suffered an early setback in the 10th minute when Igor Zlatanovic scored for Hapoel Be'er Sheva. The Azerbaijan representative equalized in the 37th minute courtesy of Christian Nwachukwu, but a delicate chip from Guy Mizrahi in the 61st minute restored the two-goal lead for the visiting team on aggregate.

In the 74th minute, Umarali Rakhmonaliev reduced the score to 3-4 for Sabah, before Tellur Mutallimov fired a stunning volley from a corner kick in the final seconds of second-half stoppage time, leveling the aggregate score at 4-4. In extra time, Djibril Diop of Hapoel was sent off with a red card just one minute before Mbina headed in to extend the lead. The Israeli team then lost another player, Eliel Peretz, also to a red card after Mickels scored the decisive goal in the 115th minute, concluding with a 6-4 aggregate victory.

Sabah thus navigated four qualifying rounds to become the second representative in Azerbaijan football history (after Qarabag) to participate in the main draw of the Champions League.

Joy-Lance Mickels celebrates after scoring in the Sabah – Partizan Belgrade match in the Europa Conference League third qualifying round of the 2023-2024 season at Bank Respublika Arena, Masazir, Azerbaijan on 10/8/2023. *Photo: Sabah FC*

Sabah – a 9-year-old newcomer

Crowned domestic champions in April this year, the club from Masazir (Eastern Azerbaijan) is only nine years old. Established on 8/9/2017 and promoted directly to the Azerbaijan Premier League, Sabah will become one of the youngest clubs in history to compete in the Champions League. Before overcoming Hapoel Be'er Sheva on the evening of 25/8, Sabah had also endured three grueling qualifying rounds, eliminating in turn New Saints (Wales), KuPS (Finland), and AGF Aarhus (Denmark).

Before Sabah, FC Astana, RB Leipzig, and Paphos also achieved fairytale journeys, breaking records for the youngest clubs to play in the Champions League. Astana (Kazakhstan), founded in 2009 following the merger of FK Almaty and Megasport Almaty, reached the group stage in the 2015-2016 season, just six years after its inception. Leipzig (Germany) took eight years to experience Champions League football for the first time in the 2017-2018 season. Meanwhile, Paphos of Cyprus also made history last year, 11 years after its establishment.

In the 2026-2027 Champions League, Sabah will certainly be one of the underdogs. They will be placed in pot 4 for the draw taking place on 28/8 in Monaco. There, the Azerbaijan representative will discover their eight opponents they must face in the group stage.

Compiled by Hoang Thong