Urartu's Opponent Excluded from Conference League: Historic Chance for Yerevan Side to Reach Third Round
- Author: Vahe Hakobyan
- Sportaran
Yerevan's Urartu has received an unexpected opportunity to reach the third qualifying round of European competitions for the first time in the club's history. Today it became known that Urartu’s opponent in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League — Slovak club DAC 1904 Dunajská Streda — has been excluded from the tournament.
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) officially announced the disqualification of the Slovak club following the conclusion of a legal investigation related to violations of the multiple club ownership rules. According to UEFA’s press service, the exclusion was caused by a conflict of interest: the owner of DAC 1904, Oszkár Világi, also controls the Hungarian club ETO FC Győr, which was also due to participate in the Conference League in the 2025/26 season.
UEFA’s official statement reads:
"Based on the review of the submitted documents, the First Chamber of UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body concluded that ETO Győr and DAC 1904 Dunajská Streda, as of March 1, 2025, violated the multiple club ownership rule set out in Article 5.01 of the UEFA Club Competitions Regulations."
What does this mean for Urartu?
Now, if Urartu successfully overcomes Belarusian side Neman (Grodno) in the first qualifying round, the Armenian club will automatically advance to the third qualifying round of the Conference League. This could become a historic achievement for Urartu, as the team has never reached this stage in European competitions before.
This opportunity opens new prospects for Urartu: increasing the club's recognition in Europe and earning additional points for the Armenian club ranking.
Let us remind that the first match between Urartu and Neman will take place on July 10 in Yerevan, and the return leg will be held on July 17 in Győr, Hungary. Now, Urartu's motivation is doubled, as a win over the Belarusians will guarantee automatic progress to the next stage without the need to play a strong Slovak opponent.