FC Kairat to Face Celtic in Champions League Play-Off Showdown

Almaty-based FC Kairat is set to take on Scottish football powerhouse Celtic in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round.

The highly anticipated match will take place during the night of August 20-21, marking a significant challenge and opportunity for the Kazakh club on the European stage, The Caspian Post reports, citing Kazinform.

The opening match between the two sides will take place in Glasgow, Scotland. Live coverage of Celtic vs. Kairat is scheduled to begin at 00:00 Astana time and will be broadcast on the national sports channel Qazsport.

For the Scottish club, this fixture will mark its first appearance in European competition for the 2025/26 season. By contrast, Kairat has already advanced through three qualifying rounds. In the first stage, the Kazakh side overcame Slovenia’s Olimpija with a 3:1 aggregate score. In the second round, Kairat secured victory over Finland’s KuPS (3:2), before delivering a sensational triumph against Slovakia’s Slovan Bratislava, drawing 1:1 on aggregate and prevailing 4:3 in a penalty shootout.

Kazakhstan entered the new European season with four representatives. However, Astana, Aktobe, and Ordabasy have already completed their campaigns, leaving Kairat as the country’s sole contender on the continental stage.