Two freshly crowned national champions, two fanbases starved of European glory for a generation, and one place in the Champions League third qualifying round on the line. Levski Sofia vs Universitatea Craiova is, on paper, one of the most evenly balanced ties of the entire second qualifying round – and that makes it a fascinating puzzle for bettors.
The first leg kicks off at 18:30 UK time (20:30 local) on Wednesday 22 July at the Vivacom Arena – Georgi Asparuhov Stadium in Sofia, with the return leg to follow a week later at the Ion Oblemenco in Craiova. Below, we break down both teams’ form, the key tactical battles, the team news that matters, and – most importantly – where we believe the genuine betting value lies.
Match Information at a Glance
- Fixture: Levski Sofia vs Universitatea Craiova
- Competition: UEFA Champions League 2026/27 – Second Qualifying Round, First Leg (Champions Path)
- Date & Kick-off: Wednesday 22 July, 18:30 (UK time)
- Venue: Vivacom Arena – Georgi Asparuhov Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria
- Head-to-Head: No previous competitive meetings
- What’s at stake: The aggregate winner advances to the third qualifying round; the loser drops into the Europa League qualifiers, so European football continues either way – but the Champions League dream ends for one of them here.
Why This Tie Is So Hard to Split
It is rare in Champions League qualifying to find two clubs whose recent stories mirror each other so closely.
Levski Sofia ended a 17-year wait by winning the 2025/26 Bulgarian First League – their 27th title and first since 2009 – sealing it with four games to spare. Universitatea Craiova, meanwhile, ended an even longer drought, lifting their fifth Romanian Liga I crown and their first since 1990/91. Both squads arrive brimming with the confidence that only ending a decades-long title famine can provide.
Both also cruised through the first qualifying round with identical 5-1 aggregate scorelines. Levski drew 1-1 away at Borac Banja Luka before dismantling the Bosnian champions 4-0 in Sofia, with Armstrong Oko-Flex, a Reinaldo brace and Juan Perea Sanchez doing the damage. Craiova hammered ML Vitebsk 4-1 away in Belarus – Assad Al-Hamlawi converting two penalties and Stefan Baiaram opening the scoring inside four minutes – before a professional 1-0 home win completed the job, Nicusor Bancu striking in stoppage time.
Add in the fact that Craiova also won the Romanian Super Cup on penalties just before this tie – their third domestic trophy of 2026 – and you have two sides in genuinely excellent competitive rhythm. This is not a mismatch. It is a coin-flip tie where the small details will decide it.
Levski Sofia: Form, Strengths and Weaknesses
Recent form (all competitions): W 4-0 (Borac, H), D 1-1 (Borac, A), plus a dominant title-winning domestic campaign that featured results like a 7-0 demolition of Septemvri.
Levski’s return to the summit of Bulgarian football was built on relentless home form and a deep, versatile attack. Everton Bala finished the 2025/26 league season as joint top scorer with 18 goals, while the second leg against Borac showcased how many different players can hurt you: Oko-Flex’s directness from wide areas, Reinaldo’s movement and finishing through the middle, and Perea Sanchez arriving from the bench to add gloss.
The Georgi Asparuhov Stadium will be close to full and ferociously loud – Levski’s support is among the most intimidating in the Balkans, and the club will treat this as the biggest home European night in well over a decade.
The concern? Levski’s defence looked briefly vulnerable in the away leg against Borac, conceding an early penalty and needing a second-half equaliser to steady the tie. Craiova are a significant step up in quality from the Bosnian champions, and any similar lapse in concentration against Al-Hamlawi and Baiaram is far more likely to be punished.
Universitatea Craiova: Form, Strengths and Weaknesses
Recent form (all competitions): W 1-0 (Vitebsk, H), Super Cup win on penalties, W 4-1 (Vitebsk, A), a 4-goal performance against UTA Arad in the league, and a 7-1 pre-season rout of FC Stubai.
Filipe Coelho’s side are arguably the form team of this entire qualifying round. Their attack is multi-dimensional: Al-Hamlawi offers a genuine penalty-box presence and ice-cold composure from the spot, Baiaram provides creativity and early-game intensity from the number ten spaces, Monday Etim stretches defences with pace, and captain Nicusor Bancu chips in with decisive goals from left-back, as his stoppage-time winner against Vitebsk proved. Steven Nsimba adds another scoring threat from the bench.
Tactically, Coelho has shown flexibility, shifting between a back three and a back four across the two Vitebsk legs and rotating heavily in the second leg once the tie was won – meaning his first-choice XI arrives in Sofia fresh.
The concern? Goalkeeper Pavlo Isenko has been sidelined through injury, and away from home against elite-atmosphere opposition, Craiova are expected to sit deeper and absorb pressure – a mode they have used less often during their trophy-laden run. If Levski’s wide players get joy early, the Romanian champions could find themselves pinned back for long spells.
Head-to-Head and Historical Context
Remarkably, these two storied Eastern European clubs have never met in official competition. That removes any psychological baggage and pushes the analysis firmly onto current form and tactical matchups – where, as outlined above, there is precious little separating them.
One angle worth noting: Bulgarian and Romanian champions have produced tight, cagey continental meetings historically, and first legs at this stage of qualifying are frequently decided by fine margins, with both managers acutely aware that the tie is settled over 180 minutes, not 90.
Predicted Line-ups
Levski Sofia (probable 4-4-2): Vutsov; Dimitrov, Serafimov, Kamdem, Araújo Dos Santos; Serginho, Mota De Castro, Centelles, Oko-Flex; Reinaldo, Bala.
Universitatea Craiova (probable 3-4-3): Popescu; Romanchuk, Stevanovic, Rus; Teles, Cicaldau, Mekvabishvili, Bancu; Etim, Al-Hamlawi, Baiaram.
Line-ups are projections based on recent selections and are subject to late changes.
Odds Analysis: Where Is the Value?
Bookmakers have found this one as hard to call as we have. Levski are priced as narrow favourites purely on home advantage, with the draw heavily supported in the markets and Craiova only marginally longer than the hosts – a classic “pick’em” pricing structure for a first leg between well-matched champions.
The market that stands out is Both Teams to Score – Yes, generally available around the 2.02 mark at the time of writing. Here’s why we like it:
- Both attacks are firing. Levski put four past Borac at home; Craiova scored four away in Belarus and four in their most recent league outing. Neither side has travelled through July in defensive mode.
- Both defences have shown cracks. Levski conceded in the away leg of Q1; Craiova shipped a goal in Belarus and are without their injured goalkeeper Isenko.
- First-leg dynamics favour goals here. Craiova’s counter-attacking weapons (Etim’s pace, Al-Hamlawi’s movement) are precisely the profile that punishes a home side committing bodies forward in front of an expectant crowd.
At even-money-plus, BTTS Yes offers genuine value relative to our assessment of the probability, which we place closer to 55%.
Secondary angle: the draw and Craiova double chance (X2) both appeal for smaller stakes. Away sides of Craiova’s calibre frequently prioritise keeping a tie alive in the first leg, and Coelho’s men have the game management – three trophies in 2026 already – to leave Sofia with a result.
Our Betting Tips for Levski Sofia vs Universitatea Craiova
- Main Bet: Both Teams to Score – Yes (around 2.02) – Two in-form attacks, two fallible defences, and a first leg neither side can afford to lose heavily.
- Alternative Bet: Draw (around 3.20–3.40 where available) – Champions-vs-champions first legs are draw-magnets, and the market prices reflect how little separates these sides.
- Correct Score Prediction: Levski Sofia 1-1 Universitatea Craiova – We expect Levski’s crowd and early intensity to yield a goal, but Craiova’s quality on the break to secure a precious away goal-equivalent result, leaving the tie beautifully poised for the Ion Oblemenco.
Final Prediction: 1-1 draw – Both Teams to Score lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
What time does Levski Sofia vs Universitatea Craiova kick off? The first leg kicks off at 18:30 UK time (20:30 local time in Sofia) on Wednesday 22 July.
Where is the match being played? At the Vivacom Arena – Georgi Asparuhov Stadium in Sofia, Bulgaria. The second leg takes place a week later at the Ion Oblemenco Stadium in Craiova, Romania.
Have Levski Sofia and Universitatea Craiova played each other before? No. This is the first official competitive meeting between the Bulgarian and Romanian champions.
What happens to the loser of this tie? The aggregate loser over two legs drops into the UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds, so their European campaign continues in a different competition.
Who is favourite to win? Levski Sofia are narrow home favourites for the first leg, but the tie itself is rated close to 50/50 by most markets – reflected in short prices on the draw and on Both Teams to Score.
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