Romanian elevens in Europe’s Football Competitions
Universitatea Craiova comes very close to the main stage of a European Football Competition
Florin Orban, 12.08.2026, 13:45
Thursday will be seeing the second round of the third preliminary leg of the football competitions, Europa League and Conference League. Romanian football side, Universitatea Craiova, is running for a place in Europa League’s play-off. The Romanian champions will be up against Finnish side KuPS Kuopio in a home match. The first game ended in a one-all draw in Finland. In Kuopio, Craiova controlled the situation in the first half of the game, which it ended in advantage through the goal scored by Ștefan Baiaram in minute 39.
The second half was more balanced though and the hosts managed an equalizer in the game’s 79th minute. The final result was fair though the Romanians’ managed to prove their technical superiority, which is expected to be capitalized upon in the return match in Craiova on Thursday. If they outperform KuPS Kuopio, Universitatea will be fighting for a place in Europa League against the Armenian side Ararat, which was defeated in the Champions League by Slovenian side Celje, 2-1 at home and 0-2 in the return match. Craiova has also secured a place in the Conference League. In case of a defeat, our footballers will be playing in the Conference League’s play-off against the loser in the match pitching the Irish side Shamrock Rovers FC against KF Egnatia of Albania. The Irish clinched a 3-1 in the first match.
Also on Thursday in the third preliminary round of the Conference League, CFR Cluj of Romania will be up against the Norwegian side Tromsø. We recall the Romanians came a cropper 5-0 in the first game in Cluj, in what was the most painful home defeat in their participation in European cups, and they actually need a miracle to qualify for the play-off. To add insult to injury the International Football Federation has again banned CFR’s transfers, a decision that was made after several players had sued the club for not getting their salaries. CFR’s financial issues have also led to a tense situation with the team’s technical staff. After its Portuguese headcoach, Antonio Folha, had been sacked following the disastrous defeat last Thursday, the club is trying to hire Marius Şumudică, one of the most appreciated Romanian technicians. The coach has called for investment, which the club could not guarantee due to its financial instability.
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