The Champions League is back in Salzburg!

In partnership with

FC Red Bull Salzburg

·2 October 2023

The Champions League is back in Salzburg!

Real Sociedad visit in first group stage home match

Our 2023/24 UEFA Champions League journey could not have started any better. Our 2-0 win at Benfica a fortnight ago with the youngest UEFA Champions League starting XI of all time showed - in no uncertain terms - that our boys are made for the biggest stage of European football. That makes the excitement even greater ahead of our first home night in the competition this season on Tuesday at 18:45 CEST!

The clash against Real Sociedad is sure to be a difficult one, but we know just what our boys are capable of doing in front of a full house. We only have to cast our minds back to our last meeting with the Basque side for that, when we won 2-1 at home in the last 32 of the 2018 UEFA Europa League to make the next round (after a 2-2 away draw in the first leg).

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3 seasons in a row in the UEFA Europa League

Real Sociedad's head coach Imanol Alguacil (who made 113 competitive appearances for the club as a player), was coaching the reserve team back then, but took over the first team ten months later. He led them to fourth place in the Spanish league last season and with that ensured their first taste of Champions League action since 2013/14!

397.75 million Euro estimated squad value

Takefusa Kubo & Co have been just as solid this season and are currently fifth in La Liga with just one defeat. Their dress rehearsal on Saturday could not have gone any better as the xuri-urdin took a commanding 3-0 win the Basque Derby against Athletic Bilbao! They could also have taken a win in their Champions League opener against Inter Milan, only for a late goal from the Italians to hold them to a very credible draw.

We have definitely been warned and know that we face opponents on Tuesday that are particularly strong in possession. Just like two weeks ago in Portugal we will try to stand our ground against them with our dynamism and determined pressing. Everything is set up for another legendary Champions League evening!

Tickets, travel & more

The match at the Red Bull Arena is virtually a sell-out! The last remaining tickets are available online in our Ticket Shop. Ticket sharing works as usual for UEFA Champions League packages and for individual matches.

to the Ticket Shop

There will be no public parking spaces on the stadium grounds on match day, so we recommend travelling by public transport. Everything you need to know about coming to the Red Bull Arena can be found in our latest match day info.

to the match day info

Views

We simply cannot wait again for the match and our next Champions League evening. We want to play really hard-hitting football again against Real Sociedad - go into it with belief and play as bravely as we did in Lisbon. We know though that we have another big challenge ahead. Real Socieded are technically and tactically extremely strong and they have such powerful dribblers on the flanks in attack. We need another top performance and to have a really good day.

Gerhard Struber

We really can't wait for our first home match in the group. Real Sociedad are a top team, they are right at the business end of the La Liga table. That says a lot about their quality. They almost beat Inter Milan in their first match too, which was really impressive.

Aleksa Terzic

Injury news

Not available for the match are Fernando (adductors), Bryan Okoh (thigh), Justin Omoregie (back) and Lukas Wallner (ankle). Sekou Koita is out with an adductor injury. Mads Bidstrup is a doubt due to a leg injury sustained against Austria Lustenau.

My RBS Prediction Game

The My RBS Prediction Game also covers the UEFA Champions League. Don't forget to enter your predictions for our group - or you won't get any points at the end! You can register and play for free at any time, if you haven't managed that yet.

to the prediction game

UEFA Youth League clash as starter

As usual, the afternoon before the match will feature a UEFA Youth League clash between Real Sociedad U19 and our Young Bulls. The match will be played at the Red Bull Football Akademie in Liefering, with tickets available online in our Ticket Shop (no ticket sales on site!). All the information on the match, our RBS TV live stream and more can be seen in our Youth League preview.

to the youth league preview