Champions League Qualifiers

LIVE: Can Sturm Graz pull off an upset against Fenerbahçe?

(Bild: GEPA)

Third round of Champions League qualifying: Sturm Graz faces Fenerbahçe Istanbul in the first leg. We’re covering the match live—see the live ticker below. The score is currently 2–0.

Here’s the live ticker:

Things are coming thick and fast for Sturm Graz right now. After two wins against the Scottish team Heart of Midlothian, Coach Fabio Ingolitsch’s squad faces Fenerbahçe today in Istanbul in the third qualifying round of the Champions League. “We want to put up as strong a fight as possible to secure the best possible starting position for our home game,” said Ingolitsch. The second leg will take place next Tuesday.

Fabio Ingolitsch(Bild: APA/EXPA/ STEFAN ADELSBERGER)

The Sturm coach emphasized that the most important goal has already been achieved. “We’ve secured a spot in the Europa League. That’s why we have the necessary dose of courage and self-confidence,” Ingolitsch explained ahead of the clash between the two national runners-up. The Graz team got off to an excellent start to the season with three wins in Champions League qualifying and the ÖFB Cup, but suffered their first setback in Saturday’s Bundesliga opener with a 1-1 draw at WSG Tirol. Incidentally, Wattener, by the way, are also the team against whom the Styrians suffered their last competitive defeat—a 1-2 loss on February 14. The “Blackys” have been undefeated for 17 competitive matches— a streak that could come to an end in Istanbul.

Six Times the Market Value of the Turks
That’s because the team led by new Fenerbahçe coach Ismail Kartal is estimated to be worth six times as much as the Graz side. In the current transfer window alone, around 80 million euros have been invested so far in new players such as Englishman Mason Greenwood from Olympique Marseille and Dutch national team player Nathan Ake from Manchester City. These are sums that the Styrian capital can only dream of.

Nathan Ake (center)(Bild: EPA)

“They are determined to qualify for the Champions League. We’re the clear underdogs, and we’re happy to accept that role—it’s one we can live with just fine,” emphasized Ingolitsch, whose squad will face players like Marco Asensio (formerly of Real Madrid, PSG), Milan Skriniar (Inter, PSG), and Matteo Guendouzi (Arsenal, Marseille, Lazio). Fenerbahçe, which has never lost to an Austrian club, also has ties to Austria: Right back Mert Müldür was born in Vienna and began his career at Rapid. Attacking midfielder Dorgeles Nene was signed from Red Bull Salzburg last year—for a reported 18 to 20 million euros.

 Expects a Cauldron of ExcitementAt the Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium, the Graz team is in for a real battle. “It will also be a mental challenge to play in one of the loudest stadiums in Europe in front of fanatical Turkish fans,” said Ingolitsch. For midfielder Jacob Hödl, on the other hand, “it’s the coolest thing to play in front of such a crowd.” The 2-0 away win at Hearts should serve as a model. “It’s good that we had that shared experience in Scotland . We hope we can build on that in an even bigger cauldron in front of an even bigger crowd. It’s the next baptism by fire, where we’ll see just how far our young team has come,” said Ingolitsch.

Missing the match will be Otar Kiteishvili (calf), Filip Rozga (muscle injury), and Leon Grgic (recovering); the trio did not board the flight to Istanbul. Kiteishvili, with whom the team doesn’t want to rush anything, is “hard to replace, if at all,” and the entire team must make up for his absence together, Ingolitsch insisted. So far, they’ve managed that quite well. It’s also encouraging that Fenerbahçe, in its two competitive matches this season in the Champions League qualifiers against Gornik Zabrze (1–0 and 1–1), has not yet shown itself to be a top-tier team.

In the Shadow of the Betting Scandal
Fenerbahçe captain Mert Hakan Yandas will not be in the lineup. The midfielder is suspended due to his involvement in the Turkish betting scandal that made headlines in late 2025. Yandas was held in pretrial detention and suspended for one year from all soccer-related activities by the Turkish Football Federation’s disciplinary committee. A few days ago, the Court of Appeals unexpectedly reduced this suspension to six months, and it now runs through the end of October. Despite his prominent role in the scandal, Fenerbahçe signed Yandas to a new one-year contract at minimum wage in July. However, the 31-year-old last played 16 months ago—due to injuries and the suspension.