The Union Saint-Gilloise fought to a thrilling 3-3 draw against Norwegian side Bodo Glimt in the first leg of their third qualifying round for the Champions League, played in Ostend on Tuesday evening. The match, packed with drama and late drama, saw both teams trade blows in a back-and-forth battle that kept fans on the edge of their seats.
Bodo Glimt struck first through Berg on a free kick in the 20th minute, but Florucz quickly leveled the score for Union Saint-Gilloise just five minutes later. The Norwegian side regained the lead through Blomberg from the penalty spot in the 29th minute, only for Florucz to equalize again right before halftime. In a tense finish, David put Union ahead in the 88th minute, but Bjortuft restored parity in stoppage time, sealing the draw.
What happens next in the champions league race
The second leg is set for Tuesday, August 11 at 18:00 on Bodo Glimt’s synthetic pitch in Norway. A victory will send the winner directly into the playoff round, where they will face the victor of the clash between Greek runners-up Olympiacos and Dutch Eredivisie side NEC Nijmegen, who also played to a 0-0 stalemate in their qualifier. The winning side from that playoff will advance to the league phase, where Club Brugge — the Belgian champions — are already through.
Should Union Saint-Gilloise fall short, they will drop into the Europa League league phase, providing another route to European competition. It’s a familiar path for the Brussels club, who have been eliminated in this same stage twice before: first by Rangers in 2022, and again by Slavia Prague in 2024.
With everything to play for, Union Saint-Gilloise must now prepare for a daunting trip to Norway, where Bodo Glimt will be hungry to advance. The stakes couldn’t be higher — a European dream is on the line.
