Rayo Vallecano vs Strasbourg Preview & Prediction | 2025-26 UEFA Conference League | Semi-Final
by Alex Lawes ·
Updated
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Intense and fighting Rayo Vallecano side play their first ever European semi-final as they welcome Strasbourg to Vallecas in Madrid on Thursday night.
Kick-off date/time:
How to watch on TV: UK – TNT Sports / USA – Not televised
How to watch online: UK – HBO Max / USA – Paramount+
Key stats
- This is the first UEFA match between Rayo Vallecano and Strasbourg.
- This is the first match between clubs from Spain and France in the UEFA Conference League competition proper.
- Rayo Vallecano’s only previous UEFA fixtures against French opposition came in the 2000/01 UEFA Cup fourth round, when they defeated Bordeaux 6-2 on aggregate after a 4-1 home win and a 2-1 victory away.
- Rayo Vallecano have reached their first UEFA semi‑final in only their second season of European competition. Their previous participation came in the 2000/01 UEFA Cup, where they were beaten 4-2 on aggregate by Alavés in the last eight.
- Rayo Vallecano are the second Spanish team to reach the UEFA Conference League semi‑finals, following Real Betis, who defeated Fiorentina 4-3 on aggregate in last season’s semi‑finals.
- Rayo Vallecano have won ten of their 12 previous UEFA competition home matches (D1 L1).
- Rayo Vallecano have won eight of their nine previous UEFA two-legged ties.
- This is Strasbourg’s first UEFA competition match against a Spanish team.
- Strasbourg are in their first major UEFA competition semi-final (excludes Intertoto Cup).
- Strasbourg are the second French team to reach the UEFA Conference League semi‑finals, following Marseille, who were beaten 3-2 on aggregate by Feyenoord in the 2021/22 edition.
- Strasbourg have lost only one of their 12 previous UEFA matches this season (W8 D3).
- Strasbourg have won seven of their last nine UEFA two‑legged ties.
Rayo Vallecano vs Strasbourg prediction
At the weekend, Rayo Vallecano fought back from 3-1 down to share a 3-3 draw with Real Sociedad with a 99th minute equaliser scored by Alemao. Rayo have surpassed expectations to reach this stage of Europe, while also remaining content in mid-table in La Liga, due to major off-field issues to do with the running of the club.
Gary O’Neil and his Strasbourg side came from 2-0 down on aggregate to hammer Mainz by four goals to nil in the second-leg of their quarter-final against Mainz. Since then, though, Strasbourg have suffered a Ligue 1 defeat to Stade Rennais and a Coupe de France semi-final loss to Nice before a dramatic, late come from behind 3-2 win away at Lorient at the weekend.
These are two energetic sides that fight very hard, as shown by their outing at the weekend and both teams scoring would seem a good bet for this one.
Rayo Vallecano vs Strasbourg tip: Both teams to score
