Ararat Armenia host Riga FC at Abovyan City Stadium on 7 July 2026 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League first qualifying round, with the return leg the following week in Riga. Both clubs arrive as domestic champions: Ararat won the Armenian Premier League with 60 points from 27 matches while Riga took the 2025 Virslīga title and that is where the similarities end. Win over two legs and you advance to the second qualifying round, lose and you drop into the Conference League path. Riga's domestic season is still running and that match sharpness is something Ararat, whose campaign ended weeks ago, can only try to replicate in training.
Neither club has met at senior level before, so there is no head to head history to work from. Tulipa took charge of Ararat on 3 June 2025 and guided them to the title in his first season, while Guľa has been at Riga since January 2025 overseeing a sustained unbeaten run.
Ararat's last six results read D-W-W-L-W-W but their European warm-up matches told a different story: back to back 1-1 draws against Mura and Vojvodina suggest the new group has not yet clicked at that level. Riga's form, by contrast, is almost unsettling in how consistent it has been: unbeaten across 21 games in all competitions, leading at half time in eight of their last nine and 65 goals scored from 22 league matches against just 19 conceded with nine clean sheets.
Ararat have done a lot of business this summer, having lost Hakobyan, Bruno Pinto and João Queirós with several new arrivals coming in, which means Tulipa is still integrating new faces rather than working with a settled group. The expected lineup puts Bravim in goal behind a back four of Oliviera, Malis, Felipe and Pereira, with Tera and Welton in central midfield and Serobyan, Ambartsumyan, Shaghoyan and Lima ahead of them. Riga look considerably more settled, with Orols in goal, Salazar, Wassom, Cernomordijs and Jurkovskis across the back four, Ankrah and Oulad M'Hand in midfield and a front four of Diop, Augusto, Aouani and Ramires.
Riga play a high press, possession heavy game and have been ruthless in front of goal all season. Serobyan and Shaghoyan will need to find space in behind Jurkovskis and Salazar if Ararat are to cause any real damage, though Augusto remains the most dangerous individual on the pitch having contributed six goals and three assists in 16 league games. Ararat's defensive line will be tested repeatedly and the fitness gap tends to make itself felt in the final quarter as Riga, deep into a live season, pull ahead of a side still working its way back to competitive sharpness.
The structural case for 1-1 is straightforward: Ararat's defensive shape is good enough to blunt Riga's press for long stretches but Augusto's output and Riga's 65 league goals make it difficult to sustain a clean sheet once legs start to tire after the hour. Ararat's best chance is staying level into the second half and catching Riga on the break, though Guľa's side have shown all season they can find a way through.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
