Champions League Matchday 3: Kairat Almaty vs Pafos facts

Matchday 3 of the UEFA Champions League pits Kairat Almaty against fellow debutants Pafos with both sides still seeking their first wins in the competition proper.

Last match

This is the teams' first meeting.

Kairat’s only previous matches against a Cypriot team were two 0-0 draws with Omonoia in the 2021/22 UEFA Conference League group stage.

Pafos' sole fixture involving a team from Kazakhstan was a 1-0 home win against Astana on Matchday 3 of last season’s Conference League.

Kairat

Kairat are in the Champions League proper for the first time. Astana, in 2015/16, are the only side from Kazakhstan to feature, drawing four of their six games (L2).

This is only Kairat's third Champions League campaign. They lost in the first qualifying round in 2005/06 and in the second qualifying round in 2021/22.

Kairat's only participation in a UEFA group stage/league phase was in the 2021/22 Conference League, when they finished bottom of their section (D2 L4).

Pafos

Pafos are in the Champions League for the first time. They took part in UEFA competition for the first time in 2024/25, losing to Elfsborg in the UEFA Europa League first qualifying round but going on to reach the Conference League round of 16.

Juan Carlos Carcedo's side are the third team from Cyprus to reach the Champions League proper after APOEL (four times) and Anorthosis Famagusta (once) and the first since APOEL in 2017/18.

Pafos were crowned Cypriot champions for the first time in 2024/25.

Key stats

Both sides conceded five goals at home on Matchday 2 – Kairat against Real Madrid (0-5) and Pafos against Bayern München (1-5).

Kairat's nine goals against is the most in the league phase after two matches. They had not conceded in four home games in the 2025/26 Champion League before Matchday 2.

Kairat have never won a game in a UEFA group stage/league phase (D2 L6) – they are aiming to become the first Kazakhstan club to record a victory in the Champions League proper.

Kairat have failed to score in four of their last five European matches.

Prior to their Matchday 2 defeat by Bayern, Pafos were unbeaten in seven Champions League matches this season (W4 D3).

The Cypriot club have scored in 14 of their last 16 European fixtures. Mislav Oršić got the club's first-ever goal in the Champions League proper on Matchday 2.

No team from Cyprus has won a game in the Champions League group stage/league phase since APOEL's 2-1 home success against Porto on 1 November 2011.