Azerbaijani football club Qarabag have failed to advance beyond the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League for the first time in their history.
İdman.Biz reports that the Aghdam club lost to CSKA Sofia over the two-legged tie. Following a goalless draw in Baku, the teams also failed to find a winner in the return leg in Sofia, which ended 0-0. The Bulgarian side prevailed 5-4 in the penalty shootout.
As a result, the second qualifying round has become Qarabag's final stage in the Europa League for the first time. Previously, the Aghdam side had either been eliminated in the first qualifying round, reached at least the third stage of the competition, or entered the Europa League from the Champions League at a later stage.
Qarabag were eliminated three times in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Cup, the predecessor of the current Europa League. In the 1997/98 season, they lost to Czech side Jablonec (0-5, 0-3), in 2004/05 to Slovakia's Dukla Banska Bystrica (0-3, 0-1), and in 2006/07 to Moldova's Zimbru (1-1, 1-2).
Since the 2006/07 season, Qarabag had never been eliminated before the third qualifying round when competing in UEFA Cup/Europa League qualification. The Aghdam club reached the play-off round in 2009/10 and repeated that achievement in 2010/11. They were eliminated in the third qualifying round in 2011/12 before once again reaching the play-offs in 2013/14.
In subsequent years, Qarabag predominantly began their European campaigns in the Champions League. In the 2014/15, 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons, the Aghdam side dropped into the Europa League after the third qualifying round of Europe's premier club competition and went on to reach the group stage. They followed a similar route in the 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons.
In 2022/23, Qarabag reached the Champions League play-off round and, after losing at that stage, moved directly into the Europa League group stage. In 2023/24, the Aghdam club dropped out of the Champions League in the second qualifying round, entered the Europa League in the third qualifying round and eventually reached the round of 16.
In the 2024/25 season, Qarabag once again reached the Champions League qualifying play-off round before continuing their European campaign in the Europa League league phase.
Therefore, the current season marks the first time in Qarabag's history that the second qualifying round of the Europa League has proved an insurmountable barrier.
