Sabah's nightmare UCL draw: Which giants will Rakhmonaliev face?

In Monaco, the official draw for the 2026/2027 UEFA Champions League league phase took place. For the first time in the competition's history, the Azerbaijani Sabah club successfully navigated several tough qualifying rounds to debut in the main stage of the continent's most prestigious tournament.

Once the draw results were announced, the football community and experts acknowledged that a true "group of death" had been formed for the Baku team.

Sabah's full schedule against European giants:

The Azerbaijani club will play eight intense matches in the league phase:

• Barcelona (Spain) — at home (Baku)

• Arsenal (England) — away (at the Emirates)

• "Borussia Dortmund" (Germany) — at home

• Manchester United" (England) — away (at Old Trafford)

• Napoli (Italy) — at home

• Villarreal (Spain) — away

• Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) — at home

• Viking (Norway) — away

Uzbek legionnaire Umarali Rakhmonaliev on the big stage!

For Uzbek football fans, this draw is doubly exciting. Our 22-year-old compatriot Umarali Rakhmonaliev is playing successfully for the Baku side.

• Successful qualification: Our compatriot played in all 8 of Sabah's UCL qualifying and play-off matches, recording 1 goal and 1 assist to his name;

• Testing against world stars: Now, Rakhmonaliev will have the opportunity to showcase his skills against world football titans like Barcelona, Manchester United" and finalists Arsenal.

Who is the reigning champion?

For information, the reigning UEFA Champions League winner is the French PSG club. The Parisian giants triumphed in a dramatic penalty shootout against London's Arsenal in last season's final to lift the trophy.