Fenerbahçe advanced to the UEFA Champions League playoff round with a commanding 3-0 aggregate victory over Sturm Graz and will face Olympique Lyon for a place in the competition’s league phase.
The Turkish club completed the job Tuesday with a 1-0 victory over Sturm Graz in Austria, adding to its 2-0 home win in the first leg a week earlier. Anderson Talisca converted a second-half penalty to settle the return leg and send Fenerbahçe into the final qualifying round with two clean sheets.
The result also extended Fenerbahçe’s impressive start to its Champions League qualifying campaign and brought the club one step closer to ending a long wait for a place in Europe’s premier club competition.
Fenerbahçe will now meet Lyon in a two-legged playoff after the French side overturned a first-leg deficit against Sparta Prague.
Lyon entered the second leg having lost 2-1 in the Czech Republic but produced a dominant response at Groupama Stadium, winning 3-0 to advance 4-2 on aggregate. Ernest Nuamah opened the scoring in the 20th minute before Ainsley Maitland-Niles doubled Lyon’s advantage in the 66th. Tyler Morton added a third six minutes later.
Sparta’s task became even more difficult when Adam Sevinsky was sent off in the first half.
The playoff between Fenerbahçe and Lyon will begin Aug. 18 in Istanbul, with the return leg scheduled for Aug. 26 at Groupama Stadium in Decines-Charpieu, France. The winner will secure a place in the Champions League league phase, while the loser will drop into the Europa League league phase.
For Fenerbahçe, the playoff represents a major opportunity to return to the Champions League league phase for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
The Istanbul club has been steadily building momentum through the qualifying rounds. It previously eliminated Poland’s Gornik Zabrze before overcoming Sturm Graz without conceding a goal across the two legs.
Talisca has been particularly influential, scoring in both legs against Sturm Graz and registering four goals in four European appearances this season. His penalty in Graz provided the decisive moment after Fenerbahçe had controlled much of the tie defensively.
Coach İsmail Kartal has repeatedly stressed discipline and organization as key components of his team's progress. Fenerbahçe will now need those qualities against a Lyon side with greater Champions League pedigree and considerable attacking talent.
The Turkish club can also draw confidence from the performances of players such as Talisca, Kerem Aktürkoğlu, N’Golo Kante, Matteo Guendouzi and Milan Škriniar as it prepares for its biggest test of the qualifying campaign.
Fenerbahçe last enjoyed a deep Champions League run in 2007-08, when it reached the quarterfinals before being eliminated by Chelsea.
Lyon arrive in Istanbul with their own ambitions of returning to the Champions League league phase.
The French club, coached by Paulo Fonseca, finished fourth in Ligue 1 last season and entered the competition in the third qualifying round. Its comeback against Sparta Prague showed both its attacking quality and resilience after falling behind in the first leg.
Lyon have a strong history in the Champions League, reaching the semifinals in 2010 and again in 2020. The club will now look to revive that European pedigree by eliminating Fenerbahçe.
Captain Corentin Tolisso remains an experienced presence in midfield, while players such as Nuamah, Malick Fofana and Loïs Openda give Lyon plenty of attacking options.
Lyon hold the historical edge
The two clubs are no strangers to European competition.
Lyon won all four of their meetings with Fenerbahçe in the Champions League group stage in the early 2000s, including victories during the 2001-02 and 2004-05 campaigns.
Their most recent meeting ended in a 0-0 draw in the 2024-25 Europa League league phase.
That history gives Lyon the statistical edge, but Fenerbahçe will enter the playoff with home advantage in the opening leg and the confidence generated by a flawless qualifying record so far.
With a Champions League place at stake, the two-legged showdown offers Fenerbahçe a chance to end an 18-year wait for a return to the competition’s league phase, while Lyon will look to use its European experience to keep that opportunity out of reach.
