Men’s club competition qualifying approaching its climax

By the time the qualifying rounds conclude, 195 clubs from 54 national associations will have contested 428 matches. It means that when the league phase draws take place in Monaco at the end of August, 45% of the season’s fixtures will have already been played.

Here’s our wrap-up of the top stories from the first legs of the third qualifying rounds.

UEFA Champions League: The comebacks continue

In a clash between two of last season’s Champions League league phase clubs, Union SG and Bodø/Glimt traded late goals to draw a thrilling first leg 3-3. Patrick Berg, one of the heroes of Bodø’s stunning 2025/26 campaign, opened the scoring, while Raul Florucz was at the double for the hosts.

A dramatic 94th-minute winner gave Slovan Bratislava – coached by Champions League winner Yaya Toure – a 2-1 comeback victory over Mjällby, whose dramatic debut European campaign will continue in next week's second leg.

Ararat-Armenia's quest to reach the league phase of the Champions League remains on course

Ararat-Armenia took a step closer to making their own bit of European history. Despite falling behind to a 22nd-minute penalty, the hosts recovered to beat Celje 2-1 and boost their chances of a first appearance in the league phase of the Champions League.

Elsewhere, 18-year-old James Bogere, who was playing for Ugandan third-tier side Masaka Sunshine at the start of 2026, enjoyed a memorable week. He scored his first two goals – both outside the box, one with each foot – for Danish side Aarhus, securing a 2-1 victory over Azerbaijan’s Sabah.

UEFA Europa League: Anderlecht make fast start

Several big names are among the teams looking to secure a league phase spot in the Europa League.

Anderlecht travelled to PAOK in Thessaloniki, where the Greek side had not lost a Europa League qualifying match in 18 attempts since 2009, but it took Anderlecht just 16 seconds to score. The Belgians had goalkeeper Colin Coosemans to thank for helping keep PAOK at bay for a 1-0 win, the captain saving a first-half penalty.

Goalkeeper Colin Coosemans saved a penalty to protect Anderlecht's leadAFP via Getty Images

Also winning on the road were Beşiktaş, who went down to 10 men in the 72nd minute against Hradec Králové but scored the winner eight minutes later, taking a 1-0 lead back to Istanbul.

Nearly 20,000 people watched Polish side Jagiellonia come from behind to claim a 2-1 victory over Scotland’s Rangers, with Kajetan Szmyt scoring twice, while Portuguese heavyweights Benfica cruised to a 6-1 victory over Hearts – who came so close to claiming a Scottish league title earlier this year.

UEFA Conference League: Mixed fortunes for potential debutants

The dream of becoming Andorra's first UEFA club competition group stage or league phase representatives remains alive for Inter Escaldes. Goals in either half against Flora Tallinn gave them a 2-0 lead to take to Estonia.

Tre Fiori have it all to do if they are to make equivalent history for San Marino. Despite taking a 1-0 lead in the 56th minute, a flurry of goals resulted in them being beaten 4-1 by Kosovan visitors Drita.

Andorran side Inter Escaldes claimed a 2-0 victoryMartin Silva Cosentino/Getty Images

Elsewhere, Finland's men’s all-time leading goalscorer, Teemu Pukki, was on the scoresheet for HJK against Motherwell (1-1), while Isak Dahlqvist bagged a hat-trick for Tromsø, who won 5-0 at CFR Cluj.

The Champions League second-leg matches are set for 11 August, with Europa League and Conference League return legs taking place on 11, 12 and 13 August.