Levski and Kairat open a first-ever meeting in the Champions League
The third qualifying round of the 2026-27 Champions League throws up a rare fixture: two national champions who have never met in an official match. Levski Sofia host Kairat on Wednesday at the Georgi Asparuhov Stadium in Sofia, looking to build a lead before the trip to Almaty on 11 August. It is the first time the clubs have faced each other in their history.
A reborn Levski after a 17-year wait
The Bulgarian side is enjoying a moment of reaffirmation. After almost two decades without lifting the national trophy, Levski won their 27th title last season under Spanish coach Julio Velázquez. That meant 25 wins in 36 rounds across the regular phase and the championship group, with 81 points accumulated – numbers that make the club the dominant force in Bulgarian football today.
The attack had Everton Bala as its main name, with 19 goals in the season, 18 of them in the league, sharing the scoring charts with Mamadou Diallo. The Brazilian remains the attacking reference and has already found the net in this Champions League run, in the tie against Universitatea Craiova. The start of 2026-27 has kept the momentum going: two wins in two rounds of the domestic league.
In the European qualifiers Levski have shown consistency. They knocked out Borac on a 5-1 aggregate and went through against Craiova 3-2, even after conceding a draw in Romania. The side has scored in all four matches played in the competition so far – a clear sign that the Bulgarian attack works regardless of the opponent.
Kairat: defensive solidity and a weak spot away from home
On the other side, Kairat arrive as back-to-back Kazakh champions, with five titles in their history and relevant recent experience: they played the league phase of the 2025-26 Champions League, facing names such as Real Madrid, Arsenal and Inter Milan. In the Kazakh league they lead comfortably – 45 points from 20 rounds, only one defeat and the best defence in the competition, with a mere 14 goals conceded.
The problem shows up away from home. In this season’s European qualifiers Kairat lost 2-0 to Sutjeska away and went down 1-0 to Omonia in Nicosia, needing penalties to stay alive. They failed to score in two of the four matches played – a sign of fragility that Levski will try to exploit from the opening minutes, forcing the Kazakh side out of its comfort zone.
In the squad, Jorginho and Dastan Satpaev share the Kazakh league scoring lead with eight goals each, while Edmilson Filho has five. The signing of Marc Gual, formerly of Rio Ave, strengthens the team’s European experience, but Dan Glazer’s departure to Maccabi Tel Aviv disturbs the midfield structure, still an unknown for coach Rafael Urazbakhtin.
With no history, the tie becomes a test of adaptation
The absence of previous meetings adds an extra layer of unpredictability. Neither Velázquez nor Urazbakhtin has direct reference points on the opponent, which tends to make the opening minutes more cautious, almost a survey of the terrain. Even so, home advantage and recent form weigh in Levski’s favour, and they are expected to press high from the first whistle, working the flanks with Nascimento Satorno and Armstrong Oko-Flex.
Kairat, for their part, are likely to sit deep behind the experienced Martynovich-Áfrico pairing and bet on quick transitions driven by Jorginho and Gual. The Kazakh plan is clear: hold the result in Sofia and settle the tie at home in front of their own crowd in Almaty.
