Austrian football in free fall: EUROPACUP defeats shock fans!

Austrian football in free fall: EUROPACUP defeats shock fans!

On October 24, 2025, Austrian football will show its weakest side. In the most recent European Cup games, the results of the three biggest clubs - Sturm Graz, Rapid Vienna and Red Bull Salzburg - remained sobering, as all teams remained without goals and there were a total of three zero numbers. This unfortunate result leads to a further decline in the UEFA ranking for Austria. The discussion about the international performance of Austrian football continues to be intensive and was expressed in the latest episode of the “Europacöp” format with Hannes, Harald and Patrick. In this round, the moderators expressed concerned opinions about current developments.

The Austrian league has suffered severe setbacks in recent months. With the country falling behind countries such as Kosovo, Armenia and Iceland, fans are increasingly concerned about the future of domestic football. On social media platforms, especially YouTube, the criticism of sporting performance is unmistakable. Comparison with nations like North Macedonia, Iceland and Kosovo hurts, especially when even Gibraltar performed better this week.

Situation in the UEFA ranking

Austria's position in the UEFA rankings is alarming. As UEFA explains, the coefficients for the associations are calculated based on the results in the UEFA competitions. The performances from the last five seasons are taken into account, particularly in the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Conference League. The season coefficient is determined by adding the points of all clubs and dividing by the number of participating clubs. Austria shows considerable weaknesses here.

Austria currently occupies 15th place in the five-year ranking with a narrow lead of 1,250 points over Switzerland. Norway and Sweden have overtaken Austria in the rankings, further underlining how much the nation is suffering under the current conditions. Norway have picked up points with teams like Bodø/Glimt, who are in the semi-finals of the Europa League, and their impressive wins against big names like Porto and Lazio, clearly leaving Austria behind in the five-year standings.

Future challenges

The situation is worrying as UEFA's reforms bring international competition closer. Especially with a view to the 2025/26 season, in which Norway will receive an additional starting place, the need for improvements in Austrian football is becoming more urgent than ever. The current 3,237 points behind Norway are a clear warning sign. Sweden, currently 20th in the five-year rankings, has also caught up and poses a significant challenge to Austria, with the gap to the Austrian league of 5,125 points adding further pressure.

In summary, it should be noted that Austrian football urgently needs to deal with its structural and sporting problems in order not to fall further behind in international competition. The future of domestic clubs hangs in the balance, and both association officials and fans face a critical turning point.

For further details on the UEFA rankings and their implications, visit uefa.com, while for additional perspectives you can read the analysis at 90minuten.at. Detailed reporting on the current crisis in Austrian football is provided by laola1.at.