Kairat and Real Madrid will make Champions League history on Tuesday, September 30, by playing the easternmost fixture in the competition’s history in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Kairat Almaty: a brief history
If you hadn’t heard of Kairat (who are officially named Football Club Kairat, and not Kairat Almaty) until recently, there’s good reason. Although they were crowned champions of Kazakhstan for the fourth time in their 71-year history in 2024/25, this is their first time facing Europe’s elite. Their previous best Champions League run came in 2021/22, when they reached the second qualifying round.
This season, after wins over Olimpija Ljubljana of Slovenia, KuPS of Finland, and Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia, they were expected to fall to Scottish champions Celtic in the playoff round. Instead, Kairat advanced to the league phase on penalties after two scoreless draws.
Madrid’s marathon journey for historic game
Tuesday’s home game against Real Madrid will be by far the most high-profile match in the club’s history and their biggest home contest of the league phase. Kairat will also host fellow Champions League debutants Pafos, Greek side Olympiacos and Club Brugge of Belgium, while traveling to Inter Milan, Copenhagen and Arsenal.
For Madrid, the trip to Almaty is their longest away journey by a considerable margin. The air distance between the Kazakh city and the Spanish capital is just under 4,000 miles, more than one and a half times the distance from New York to Los Angeles. Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Jr., Jude Bellingham and their teammates will take the field at Kairat’s Central Stadium, which has a capacity of a little under 24,000, after a 13-hour flight.
Why Kazakhstan plays in Europe
Kazakhstan is the world’s ninth-largest country by area, but only about 15 percent of its territory, west of the Ural River, lies in Eastern Europe. However, the Kazakhstan Football Federation has been a UEFA member since 2002, which allows Kazakh teams to compete in European competitions regardless of geography.
Located in the far southeast of the country, Almaty is less than 200 miles from the border with China. All of Kairat’s home games will kick off in the early Champions League time slot of 6:45 p.m. CET (12:45 p.m. ET), which is 9:45 p.m. local time.
Who plays for Kairat Almaty?
Despite qualifying for the Champions League, Kairat haven’t added any household names to their squad. The team is largely made up of Kazakh players, with a few Portuguese and Brazilian imports. None have previously played in Europe’s top competitions.
Israeli midfielders Ofri Arad and Dan Glazer bring the most international experience, having been capped multiple times for their country.