Champions League Playoff Upsets
Champions League playoff first legs delivered major upsets including Bodo/Glimt stunning Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid blowing a 2-goal lead to draw Club Brugge, and Newcastle thrashing Qarabag. Europa and Conference League previews are heating up as the knockout rounds progress.
- The 3-1 victory for Bodø/Glimt marked the first time a Norwegian club has won a knockout stage match in the Champions League. The win was also their third consecutive victory in the competition, another first for a Norwegian side. - For Inter Milan, last year's runner-up, the loss was compounded by an injury to star forward Lautaro Martínez. Their lone goal was scored by 20-year-old Francesco Pio Esposito, making him the youngest Italian to score for the club in the knockout rounds. - Club Brugge's dramatic 3-3 draw against Atlético Madrid was secured by an 89th-minute equalizer from Greek winger Christos Tzolis. The Belgian side had battled back from a 2-0 halftime deficit. - The return leg between Atlético and Club Brugge is scheduled for February 24, 2026, at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano. - Newcastle's Anthony Gordon had a standout performance against Qarabag, scoring four goals in the first half of the 6-1 victory. This performance moved him to second in the competition's scoring charts for the season, behind only Kylian Mbappé. - The match was a historic first for Qarabag, as they became the first team from Azerbaijan to ever reach the Champions League knockout stages. - Due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Qarabag has been unable to play in their home city of Aghdam since 1993 and hosted the match in Baku. - These playoff ties are part of the Champions League's new format, where teams that finished 9th to 24th in the initial league phase compete in a two-legged playoff to earn a spot in the Round of 16.
