As the Inver Men find out who they will play in tomorrow’s UEFA Champions League First Qualifying Draw, Mark Strange looks at each of our potential opponents.
Inter Club d’Escaldes
Andorran champions in consecutive seasons and for the fifth time in their short history, Inter Club d’Escaldes have become a force in the Principality over the past seven years. The club was founded in 1991 but did not win the first of those Primera Divisio titles until the 2019/20 season and have since won five of the last seven including the 2025/26 season when they finished three points clear of UE Santa Coloma.
Incidentally, Inter (who share their colours with their Italian namesakes) have a relatively short European history and have never faced a side from Northern Ireland. Their European bow came a year earlier than the Inver Reds in 2020/21 where they fell to Dundalk in Europa League qualifying second round.
This is the furthest they have ventured and have won four of their 14 total European ties. Last season, they fell to a narrow 4-3 defeat to Romanian giants FCSB in the Champions League first qualifying round having won the home leg 2-1.
Key Player: Juan Camara – The former Barcelona B and Spain youth international is a key threat off the wing for Inter and had nine total goal contributions in his first season with the club last year. The 32 year-old has had a nomadic career spanning 13 clubs in five countries.
Levski Sofia
The Bulgarian heavyweights won their 27th title last season but their first since 2009 as they finally dislodged Ludogorets’ iron grip on the Parva Liga and putting a different name on the trophy for the first time since 2011.
Another side who have never faced Northern Irish opposition despite a European record stretching back to 1958 and have only visited the island of Ireland once where they defeated Dundalk 8-0 on aggregate in a 2010/11 Europa League qualifier on their way to their fourth and most recent European group stage appearance. They made their solitary Champions League group stage appearance in 2004/05 were they finished bottom of Group C containing Chelsea, Barcelona and Werder Bremen.
Their best European run came a season later when they made it all the way to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup before eventually falling to Schalke. Last season, they fell after extra-time to Braga in the Europa League second qualifying round before being edged out by AZ Alkmaar in the Conference League play-off round.
Key Player: Everton Bala – The Brazilian forward exploded into life in his first full season as a permeant Levski player, scoring 18 goals and providing five assists as his side wrestled the league trophy away from Razgrad.
Ararat-Armenia
The club is only nine years old and won their third Armenian title having won their first two in their inaugural two seasons in the top flight.
They have had six European campaigns and reached the Europa League play-off round in their first two seasons on the continental stage in 2019/20 and 2020/21 falling at the final hurdle to F91 Dudelange and Red Star Belgrade respectively. They have not got to this stage since and were beaten 6-2 on aggregate by Sparta Prague in the Conference League third qualifying round last season having beaten Unviersitatea Cluj in the previous round. They have won six of their 15 total European ties and have six times gone to either extra-time or all the way to penalties (winning two).
Key Player: Arayik Eloyan – The Armenian international forward contributed ten goals last season in his first season with the club and is a key threat in and around the box.
Sabah Baku
The Owls stunned Azeri football by winning their first Premyer Liqa title by knocking powerhouses Qarabag off their perch for the first time since 2013. They finished first at a canter having finished nine points clear at the summit. Another recently-formed club who came into existence in 2017 and are based in the Baku suburb of Masazir.
This will be Sabah’s fourth European season having debuted in the 2023/24 Conference League. The furthest they have ventured was to the third qualifying round of the Conference League both last season and the one before where they fell to the afore-mentioned Levski Sofia and St. Patrick’s Athletic.
Key Player: Joy-Lance Mickels – Mickels’ 19 goals and seven assists were a massive part of Sabah’s title. Born in Germany, Mickels had spells across five different German clubs including Borussia Monchengladbach and Schalke and is now in his second spell with the club after a short stint in Saudi Arabia in between. His form earned him a first call-up to the Rwanda squad in March along with his two brothers.
Kauno Zalgiris
The Lithuanian side won their first ever top flight title in 2025 and will be competing in the Champions League for the first time this summer. They currently sit third after 17 games in the 2026 season, three points off the top.
This will be Kauno’s seventh European campaign and they have won three of their nine ties so far. Last season was the furthest they have ever ventured as they defeated Penybont of Wales and Iceland’s Valur in the Conference League before falling to Arda of Bulgaria in the third qualifying round
Key Player: Amine Benchaib – The Belgian midfielder has been a key cog for Kauno since his arrival from Panevezys last year, averaging better than a goal a game. The 27 year-old began his career in his homeland with Lokeren before moving to Charleroi and Kortrijk and a spell in Romania before moving to Lithuania where he has quickly become a star man.
Sutjeska Niskic
The champions of Montenegro won their fifth First League title since the country’s independence in 2006 but have a history dating back to 1920 and in their current guise since 1945.
They have recent history with Northern Irish opposition having fallen 5-3 on aggregate to Linfield in the Europa League third qualifying round in 2019/20, which is actually the closest they have come to a group/league stage. They will be hoping to become the first Montenegrin club to achieve that feat this season but have won just five of their 21 total European ties going back to 2003. One of those wins came in last season’s Conference League first qualifying round with a 3-2 aggregate win over Belarus’ Dynamo Brest before exiting in the following round to Beitar Jerusalem.
Key Player: Andrija Raznatovic – The left back is a constant threat going forward having contributed 13 goal involvements last season. His performances caught the eye of Montenegro manager Mirko Vucinic and he earned his first senior cap earlier this month in a 1-0 friendly victory over Bulgaria.
Gyori ETO
Another side who knocked a long-reigning champion off their perch last season as Gyori ETO prevented Ferencvaros from winning an eighth straight Nemzeti Bajnoksag title in Hungary. It is their fifth title all time and just their second in the 21st Century having also become champions in 2012/13.
The club has a long history in Europe stretching back to the 1964/65 season when they made it all the way to the European Cup semi-finals where they fell to Benfica. They have never faced opposition from Northern Ireland and have never made a group or league phase in any competition. They reached the Europa League play-off round in 2010/11 before falling to Dinamo Zagreb and, last season, also came one tie away from the Conference League league stage after defeating Pyunik and AIK before being beaten by Rapid Vienna.
Key Player: Nadhir Benbouali – The Algerian forward first joined the club on loan from Charleroi in 2024 before making the move permanent last summer and what a decision that turned out to be. He scored 15 goals last season which earned him a call-up to Vladimir Petkovic’s World Cup squad this summer.
Iberia 1999
As their name suggests, the Georgian club was founded in 1999 but changed their name from FC Saburalo in 2024 and that has clearly brought them luck as they have won back-to-back Erovnuli Liga titles adding to the one they won in 2018 under their previous guise.
They have a relatively short European history with their first appearance coming in the 2019/20 season. That season they reached the third qualifying round of the Europa League where they lost to the afore-mentioned Ararat Armenia. They also reached the third qualifying round of the Conference League in 2023/24 while last season they were dumped out of the Champions League first qualifying round by Malmo and the Conference League second qualifying round by FCI Levadia.
Key Player: Vakho Bedoshvili – The Georgia U21 winger joined prior to the 2026 season on loan from Nizhny Novgorod in Russia and has been a key man instantly. He has four goals and three assists so far this season as his side sit top of the table again after 17 games.
Egnatia Rrogozhine
Having never won a title before the 2023/24 season, the club – founded in 1934 – have now won three Kategoria Superiore titles in a row.
As a result, they have only ever played six ties in Europe, winning their first and, so far, only, in last season’s Conference Leagued second qualifying round where they defeated Dinamo Minsk 3-0 on aggregate before falling to Larne’s 2024/25 Conference League league stage opponents Olimpija Ljubljana 4-2 in the next round.
Key Player: Fernando Medeiros – The Brazilian midfielder is in his second spell with Egnatia having also played for the club from 2022-2024 before a brief stint in Azerbaijan. The 32 year-old Santos academy graduate has had somewhat of a journeyman career in his homeland with spells in Spain and Portugal too but contributed nine goals last season and is a key cog in the midfield.
Floriana
The record Maltese Premier League champions won their 27th title last season but their first since 2020. The club dates back to 1894 and won their first title in 1910.
They have a European history dating back to 1961 and first faced Irish opposition in the 1994/95 Cup Winner’s Cup where they lost 3-2 on aggregate to Sligo Rovers. They have faced Northern Irish opposition once, defeating Linfield 1-0 in the second qualifying round of the truncated 2020/21 Europa League before being knocked out on penalties by Estonia’s Flora in the next round – the furthest they have ventured in modern European competition. Last season, they defeated Haverfordwest County in the first qualifying round of the Conference League before losing to familiar foes of the Inver Reds Ballkani in the next round.
Key Player: Federico Varela – The Argentinian playmaker joined at the beginning of last season and contributed nine goal contributions. The 30 year-old has had a nomadic career after leaving his homeland taking in Portugal, France, Spain, Turkey, Bulgaria, United States and Luxembourg before joining The Greens.
Tre Fiori
Another side who won their first title since 2020 last season, Tre Fiori secured their record ninth top flight title in San Marino last year.
Their first foray into Europe came in the 2009/10 Champions League where they lost on penalties to UE Sant Julia of Andorra and have played a total of eleven European ties. They have won two of them, defeating Bala Town 3-1 in the 2018/19 Europa League and Fola Esch of Luxembourg 4-1 in the 2022/23 Conference League. They lost 2-0 to Linfield in the 2020/21 Europa League in their only clash with Northern Irish opposition.Key Player: Matteo Prandelli – The 37 year-old striker’s senior career began in 2005 and has seen him line out for an incredible 25 different clubs as well as 19 appearances and 14 goals for the unofficial team of the Padania region in northern Italy. He joined Tre Fiori in 2024 and scored 23 goals in last year’s title-winning season.
Vardar Skopje
A third side in a row winning their first title since 2020 are Vardar Skopje of North Macedonia. That was their record 12th in their colourful history with the original club founded in 1911 before taking up their current guise in 1947.
Their first foray into Europe was in the 1961/62 Cup Winner’s Cup where they lost 5-2 on aggregate to Dunfermline Athletic. Their only group stage appearance in any European competition was in the 2017/18 Europa League after beating Turkish giants Fenerbahce in the play-off round. They lost all six games, finishing bottom of a group that contained Real Sociedad, Zenit St. Petersburg and Rosenborg. Last season, they excited the Conference League in the second qualifying round to Lausanne after defeating San Marino’s La Fiorita in round one.
Key Player: Azer Omeragic – The 23 year-old striker joined from city rivals FK Skopje in 2023 and had a breakout season last year, scoring 13 goals and assisting a further eight. That was enough for him to get his first call-up to the North Macedonia national team for this month’s friendlies with Bosnia & Herzegovina and Turkey, coming off the bench in the former and starting the latter.
ML Vitebsk
First-time champions of Belarus in 2025, the club was founded in 1983 but has had a turbulent history for such a relatively modern club. They have gone through no fewer than eleven name changes with their current name only taking into effect before last season.
The club completely dissolved due to financial difficulties in 2006 with an amateur club representing their city of Rogachev until 2014 when the club resurfaced in the Second Division and were promoted to the top flight in 2022. They currently sit second, two points behind Dinamo Minsk after eleven games of the 2026 Vysshaya Liga season and this will be their debut in Europe.
Key Player: Shamar Nicholson – The 62-time capped Jamaica international joined on loan from Mexican side Tijuana before this season and gives his side quality and experience up front. He has had fruitful spells in Slovenia, Belgium and Russia prior to this and has 21 goals for his country.
Atert Bissen
Another first-time title winner from Luxembourg, Atert Bissen will also be making their European debut this summer. Incredibly, the club from the tiny town of Bissen with a population of just over 3,000 won the National Division in their first season ever in the top flight having won back-to-back promotions from the third tier.
The club is named after the river that flows through their town and their ground holds just under half the population of the town. They were originally formed in 1917 but took on their current name in 1945.
Key Player: Roman Ferber – The 33 year-old Belgian forward had never left his homeland until making the move to Bissen at the beginning of last season and he played a huge part in the stunning title win with 21 goals. He had previously had spells at the likes of Charleroi and Union Saint-Gillioise.
