Riga FC makes fourth attempt to reach European club competition group stage

Latvian football club Riga FC starts a new bid tonight to reach the group stage of a European club competition — its fourth such attempt in recent years. Every previous try has fallen short: in 2019 the Riga side lost to Denmark's København in the decisive Europa League qualifying round, last summer they were eliminated by Prague's Sparta in the Conference League play-off, and the most painful defeat came in 2022, when they lost on penalties to nominal underdogs Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar.

A Faroese opponent

This time Riga's opponent is KÍ Klaksvik from the Faroe Islands, a club Latvian fans may remember from 2021, when RFS narrowly overcame the same side. The Faroe Islands, home to around 56,000 people, belong to the Kingdom of Denmark and are known for their fishing industry, particularly high-quality salmon farming, which gives residents some of the highest wages in the world.

The road to the play-off

This season Riga first lost in the opening Champions League qualifying round to Armenia's Ararat (3:4 on aggregate). In the Conference League second round against North Macedonia's Vardar Skopje, Abdulrahman Taiwo scored a late equalizer to level the aggregate score, after which Riga went on to win in extra time. In the third round against Hungary's Győri ETO, Brazilian forward Kaju scored the decisive late goal that sent Riga through to the play-off round.

Head coach Adrians Guļa has said reaching the league phase is the club's big dream, while backup goalkeeper Mārcis Kazainis noted the tricky pitch conditions in the Faroe Islands, where the surface reportedly stays slippery even without rain.

Both play-off legs — tonight in Klaksvik and the return leg on 27 August at Skonto Stadium in Riga — will be broadcast live on TV4 and on Sportacentrs.com.