16-07-2025
Champions League qualifier ends in 28-penalty shootout
Maltese champions Hamrun Spartans reached the second qualifying round of the Uefa Champions League for the first time on Tuesday - but they did it the hard way in a tie that went to extra time and then featured 28 penalties in a Spartans went into the second leg 2-0 down to Lithuanian champions Zalgiris but scored twice in six first-half minutes to draw had defender Vasilije Radenovic sent off in the 114th minute for a second bookable offence before the real drama of the evening a pair of misses, the teams were locked at 4-4 and the shootout went to sudden goalkeepers - Spartans captain Henry Bonello and Zalgiris' Carlos Olses - scored their midfielder Ebenezer Ofori missed the crucial spot-kick, with Jovan Cadenovic scoring the winner to give Spartans a 11-10 international Bonello, 36, became the hero for Spartans by saving two spot-kicks, while Olses saved one and four more penalties missed the reward for Spartans is a tie against Ukrainian champions Dynamo Kyiv for a place in the third round of qualifying.
Where does it rank?
Opta says the biggest penalty shootout by score in a European competition is Belfast club Glentoran's 14-13 defeat by Malta's Gzira United in Conference League qualifying in July 2023, which also featured 28 ranks just ahead of Ajax's 13-12 penalty win over Panathinaikos to reach the Europa League qualifying play-off round in August shoot-out featured a remarkable 34 and Zalgiris sit joint third on the list in terms of highest score but joint second in terms of number of penalties taken in a European world record for a shootout is believed to be the 56 penalties taken by Israeli sides SC Dimona and Shimshon Tel Aviv in May 2024 in a semi-final promotion play-off, as both sides took 28 before SC Dimona prevailed England, the overall record is held by non-league sides Washington and Bedlington for their 54-penalty shootout that decided an Ernest Armstrong Memorial Cup game in 2022.
Highest-scoring penalty shootouts in European competition (featuring 20+ successful spot-kicks)
1 Gzira United v Glentoran (14-13) - Conference League qualifying phase - 20 July 20232 Ajax v Panathinaikos (13-12) - Europa League qualifying phase - 15 August 20243= Shamrock Rovers v Ilves (12-11) - Europa League qualifying phase - 27 August 20203= Wisla Krakow v Spartak Trnava (12-11) - Conference League qualifying phase - 15 August 20245= Skonto Riga v Olimpija Ljubljana (11-10) - Champions League qualifying phase - 1 September 19935= IK Start v Drogheda United (11-10) - UEFA Cup qualifying phase - 24 August 20065= Villarreal v Manchester United (11-10) - Europa League final - 26 May 2025= Hamrun Spartans v Zalgiris (11-10) - Champions League qualifying phase - 15 July 2025
