Champions League Third Qualifying Round Preview

There is no time for rest in the UEFA Champions League as the third qualifying round is already here. The previous round provided plenty of drama as 14 teams secured league phase football for the fall, joining six direct entrants in this round.

With two rounds in the qualifiers to go, 24 teams - 20 that will play in this round - push to take the competition's final seven league phase places. Here is a preview of the 10 ties in this third qualifying stage.

Debutants Look For More Glory

After pulling off a remarkable result last time out, Kauno Žalgiris will face their toughest test yet against Champions League regulars Dinamo Zagreb. Just as they did last term, the Lithuanian side, who reached this point in the Conference League in 2025, are unbeaten so far (2-2-0). They will have to do very well to maintain that fact against a Dinamo side who have won all four previous encounters with clubs from Lithuania. All four games came in UCL qualifying, where Plavi ultimately failed to reach the group phase in either year.

Another side aiming for more success in their maiden UCL run are Sabah Baku, who are up against Denmark's AGF Aarhus. In what is their fourth success season competing in a UEFA club competition, Sabah were eliminated in this round of the Conference League, having lost the last five games. AGF's last UCL appearance came in 1987/88, where they reached the second round of the European Cup. Last week was the first time this millennium they prevailed from a two-legged continental clash.

Mjällby are up for a tricky task in facing the eight-time defending Slovak winners Slovan Bratislava. The Swedes are playing in Europe for the very first time, having secured their spot at this stage after knocking off Lincoln Red Imps in Q2. They have yet to concede in Europe at the moment. Slovan did come out on top in their other meeting with Swedish opposition, defeating BK Häcken in the Conference League last fall. However, for all of their experience in UCL qualification, only once have they gotten to the group phase.

UEFA Coeffiicents 26/27: Qualifying Week 4

Olympiakos Piraeus meet NEC Nijmegen, the other Champions League debutant this term. Already assured group football, NEC are playing their first matches in the competition. It has been 17 years since their UEFA Cup run, where they reached the round of 32. As for Olympiakos, they have a 6-5-4 record versus teams from the Netherlands all-time. This is the third year running in which Thrylos are up against a Dutch side, going 1-2-0 in that stretch.

Tie of the Round: Union Saint-Gilloise vs Bodø/Glimt

Two sides who partook in the UCL league phase for the first time last term, Union Saint-Gilloise and Bodø/Glimt, go at it in what should be a fascinating clash.

USG were pipped to the Belgian title last campaign, finishing second for the third time in the last five years. In their other two attempts in making the group phase via qualifying, Les Unionistes faltered at this stage both times. While their opponents enjoyed a run into the knockout stages in 2025/26, Union finished just outside of the top 24.

Bodø were the darlings in the Champions League last campaign, making the round of 16 before falling to Sporting CP. They have yet to defeat a Belgian club in Europe in three matches beforehand (0-1-2), with their only result coming against Union in a Europa League clash in 2024/25. The Norwegian side have played in the playoff round of the UCL in their last three qualifying round showings.

European Regulars Aiming for More

One of the other ties in the non-champions path pit together Sparta Praha and Olympique Lyonnais in what promises to be a cracking two legs. In their six meetings in European play, the Ligue 1 outfit have a 5-1-0 record, scoring in all of them. Sparta have never successfully negotiated this path of UCL qualifying, something they will look to change in this tie. As for Lyon, this is their first representation in the competition in any round since making the semi-finals back in 2019/20.

Hapoel Be'er Sheva are trying to reach the UCL proper for the first time ever, but will have to go through former European Cup winners Crvena zvezda. The Isreali champions made the playoff round twice back in 2016/17 and again a year later, but fell at the last hurdle on both occasions. Red Star will be hoping for better luck than their last experience against a side from Israel, having been toppled at the playoff stage in 2022/23 at the hands of Maccabi Haifa.

After making a long-awaited return to the UCL, Levski Sofia will take on Kairat Almaty in a tie that will certainly be seen as a big chance for both clubs. The Bulgarian side have suffered elimination by a Kazakh team before, losing to Irtysh 13 years ago in the UEL. They have already secured a group phase spot for the first time since 2010/11. Kairat, on the other hand, are trying to do the unthinkable and qualify for the league phase from the first round for the second year running. They have never lost at home in UCL qualifying, conceding just twice in nine previous games.

Having made waves in the Conference League over the last couple of years, Celje are striving for more this time around against Ararat-Armenia. This is a repeat clash from 2020, when the Armenians prevailed 1-0 at this stage in the Europa League. Celje did defeat Pyunik four years later to make their first group phase appearance and have since played in the UECL knockout stages twice. Ararat-Armenia are the fourth different team from their country to make a group stage/league phase, with this term being the first since that 2020/21 campaign in which they progressed from multiple ties in the same season.

Fenerbahçe and Sturm Graz face off in a repeat tie from 2017/18, when the former came out on top in the UEL qualifiers. Fener have never lost to an Austrian club in continental play across eight previous games (5-3-0). For Sturm, they enjoyed their joint-largest win in a two-legged tie last time out, and are trying to get past the qualifying rounds of the UCL for the first time in 26 years.