Debutants make their mark on biggest stage

What comes to mind when you think of the colour yellow? Optimism? Cheer? Happiness? It was all of the above this season at Bodø/Glimt, Kairat Almaty and Union Saint-Gilloise, three of the four newcomers to reach the league phase/group stage of the Champions League for the first time. The trio all sport a vibrant canary hue, and appropriately they and the fourth first-timers, Pafos (sky blue), brought colour, passion and a real freshness to the competition.

The new format has helped expand the horizons of the Champions League, allowing clubs far from traditional powerbases to dare to dream. Thirty-six teams compete in the league phase, with five now guaranteed a spot via qualifying from the champions path. This increases the chances of a club from a smaller footballing nation getting through. And the distance between dream and reality has shrunk: who, a few years ago, would have imagined watching players from Kazakh side Kairat celebrating wildly after getting Real Madrid in the draw?

A Kairat fan welcomes 15-time champions Real Madrid to AlmatyUEFA via Getty Images

Financial and competitive benefits

That pleasure highlights the scale of the footballing achievement, and the financial benefits are also immense. Clubs receive over €18m for reaching the league phase, then €2.1m for each win and €700k per draw. Bigger than any cash prize, though, is the opportunity to see your side go head-to-head with the best. It opens up so many new possibilities, whether it’s watching established giants such as Real Madrid, Inter or Bayern München come to your home stadium or getting to follow your team to new places.

“I’ve been a Kairat fan since I was born,” supporter Denis told The Athletic after travelling 5,600 kilometres from Almaty to watch his side take on Arsenal in north London during the league phase. “This is the biggest thing that’s happened to us in our history.”

The 2025/26 Champions League season kicked off with a sense of anticipation, especially for the four newcomers. Their entry meant the competition would venture farther and wider than ever before, from Bodø inside the Arctic Circle to Almaty, just a few hours from the Chinese border. And none of the newbies were simply making up the numbers.

An arctic miracle

Just ask Manchester City. When they journeyed to Norway on Matchday 7 to face Bodø/Glimt, the frigid weather was the least of their worries. A packed Aspmyra watched the hosts sucker-punch the English visitors to record a 3-1 win, as a sea of yellow flags and scarves waved with wild jubilation. “There are always opportunities in football, even if you come from a small town like Bodø,” said coach Kjetil Knutsen.

How do you follow up victory over Pep Guardiola’s City? By beating Diego Simeone’s Atlético de Madrid in Spain, of course, which propelled Bodø/Glimt into the knockout phase play-offs against all expectations; with two games to go, they had only mustered three points. The Arctic miracle then continued in the play-offs as they stunned 2024/25 finalists Inter 5-2 on aggregate. “I’m almost lost for words,” said forward Jens Petter Hauge following their second-leg victory at the San Siro. Although they eventually fell to Sporting CP in the round of 16, Bodø had firmly left their snowy imprint on the competition in their maiden campaign.

Pafos and Union SG punch above their weight

Pafos also impressed, beating Villarreal and Slavia Praha before finishing 26th in the 36-team table, falling just short in their bid to extend their campaign. Their victory over the Spanish side was the first by a Cypriot team in the Champions League in 14 years.

“Everyone at this club needs to be congratulated because what this team has achieved is amazing,” reflected coach Albert Celades after Matchday 8. “Tonight we feel sad because we were close to qualifying, but it is also a night to be proud. To get nine points in this competition for a team like Pafos is no small feat.”

Pafos supporters get behind their team during their match against Bayern MünchenUEFA via Getty Images

Finishing directly below Pafos with the same points tally were another success story, Union SG. When the Brussels side won promotion in 2020/21, they ended nearly half a century outside Belgium’s top flight. But far from signalling the finish line, it proved another staging post in their climb to the top. Following continued progress at home and in UEFA competition, they became Belgian champions for the first time in 90 years in 2024/25, earning a place at Europe’s top table.

Though the dream of reaching the knockout phase didn’t quite come to fruition, there was plenty to celebrate as Union SG picked up wins against three teams with European silverware to their names: PSV Eindhoven, Galatasaray and Atalanta.

“When I started supporting USG, we were still in the second division, so it’s pretty unbelievable that we were even in a position where qualifying was possible,” said Miro, a fan who attended all eight league phase games. “When I was 12, I went to a Champions League game in Slovakia and I remember listening to the anthem and thinking how special that was. It’s amazing that I’m now following the team I support 15 years later in the Champions League. It’s just incredible.”

Union SG's players celebrate a third goal during their win over PSV Eindhoven AFP via Getty Images

Pinch-me moments await more teams and fans

Kairat created memories of their own too, even if results did not go their way. A draw against fellow debutants Pafos earned their first Champions League point, which midfielder Giorgi Zaria said will forever be “part of the club’s history”. The Kazakh side’s home-grown youngster Dastan Satpayev, 17, also turned heads when he became the third-youngest scorer in Champions League history with his goal against Copenhagen.

“It occurred to me recently that usually we would pick a team to support in the Champions League. But now we are in it as well, and we are delighted to have gained extra supporters from all over the world,” said club president Kairat Boranbayev.

That pinch-me moment could well be experienced by a new set of supporters next season. While playing in the Champions League remains the dream for many clubs, these four sides have shown that it is more attainable than ever before.