Against Celtic Glasgow
Sensation team creates Champions League qualification
Updated on August 27, 2025Reading time: 1 min.
Celtic Glasgow regularly plays in the Champions League. But now the Scots failed in the qualification due to a surprise team.
The club has longed for this moment: FK Qairat Almaty has qualified for the Champions League for the first time. After a 0-0 in the first leg against Celtic Glasgow, the Kazakh champion kept his nerve in the second leg of the qualification and prevailed 3-2 after a goalless 120 minutes in penalty shooting.
It is a milestone for the team of coach Rafael Urasbachin. Almaty is only the second club from Kazakhstan, who has succeeded in entering the group phase of the “premier class”. The first was the FK Astana ten years ago.
The international competition for Almaty is not completely new. In the 2021/22 season, the club already played in the Conference League, but did not get out of the group phase there.
In addition to Almaty, Royal Union Saint-Gilloise from Belgium will also compete in the Champions League for the first time this season. The preliminary round draw will take place on Thursday (6 p.m./DAZN) in Monaco.