Kairat Almaty: Champions League Team Near Kazakhstan’s Chinese Border Set To Host Real Madrid

Real Madrid is no stranger to big games. The Spanish giants have dominated European and Spanish soccer, winning the Champions League 15 times and securing 36 La Liga titles. Arguably the biggest club in the world, the club begins another season looking to add to its already packed trophy cabinet.

But Xabi Alonso‘s side face a unique challenge this campaign. That’s because they will have travel nearly 8,000 miles round trip to face a club they’ve never played before.

And this is not for the Club World Cup or a preseason friendly – it’s for a league phase game of this year’s edition of the Champions League.

During Thursday’s draw in Monaco, Real Madrid were paired with 2024 Kazakhstan Premier League winners Kairat Almaty. The Kazakh club secured a historic qualification just 48 hours prior after winning a play-off against Celtic.

Kairat became the easternmost club to qualify for the Champions League. Almaty – the largest city in Kazakhstan by population – is closer to Beijing, New Delhi and Kabul than it is to Madrid, creating a unique matchup that has not been seen in the competition before.

But Kairat’s journey to the Champions League started in the early days of summer. While Madrid were playing in the Club World Cup in the United States, Kairat faced Olimpija Ljubljana in the first round of the Champions League qualifying rounds. Rafael Urazbakhtin‘s side had to win two more rounds against KuPS and Slovan Bratislava before facing Scottish champions Celtic in a two-legged play-off.

Nothing separated the two sides in two games, ending goalless twice after regulation. As the clock passed midnight in Almaty, Kairat won a penalty shootout 3-2 and secured a historic spot in the Champions League.

The likes of Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Jr. and Jude Bellingham will likely have to make the 12-hour flight from the Spanish capital to eastern Kazakhstan for a league phase match. Madrid is also set to play an official match in the Central Asian country for the first time in their 123-year history.

Kairat will host Club Brugge, Olympiacos and Pafos during its campaign. On the road, Urazbakhtin’s men will travel to European giants Inter Milan and Arsenal. They will also face FC Copenhagen in Denmark and 21-time Portuguese champions Sporting CP, the latter being about 4,304 miles from Almaty.