Football always has the power to bring surprises and emotions. While the top teams chase championships, civilian teams also harbor dreams.
In the 2023-24 Ligue 1 season, Brest staged a remarkable comeback, making history by qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in their 121-year history!
Let's recap Brest's journey to securing a Champions League spot.
By the 33rd round of Ligue 1, Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco had already secured the top two spots, earning their places in the Champions League.
The competition for third place was intense, with Lille sitting in third with 58 points and a goal difference of 18, while Brest was fourth with 58 points and a goal difference of 16.
This meant that Brest needed a significant win in the final round to have any chance of overtaking Lille for a Champions League berth.
In the final round, Brest played away against Toulouse, while Lille faced Nice.
Brest performed exceptionally well, with goals from Mahdi Camara, Jordan Amavi, and Kenny Lala, securing a 3-0 victory over Toulouse and completing their task admirably.
Whether they could secure third place in Ligue 1 depended on the result of the Lille vs. Nice match.
When Brest's match ended at 4:55 AM, Nice scored in the 94th minute, equalizing the score to 2-2!
Nice turned out to be Brest's "savior"—this last-minute goal dramatically changed the battle for the Champions League spot. The real-time standings showed Brest (61 points) surpassing Lille (59 points) to take third place!
Although Brest's match was over, the entire team endured an anxious wait—if Lille scored another goal to win 3-2, they would have the same points and goal difference as Brest, but Lille would claim the third Champions League spot due to their head-to-head advantage...
After a long 5-minute wait, at 5 AM, the Lille vs. Nice match ended.
This meant that Brest had secured a Champions League spot!
Brest's players and fans celebrated jubilantly. For the first time in their 121-year history, they qualified for the Champions League group stage! The 2024-25 Champions League will feature a new team among the 36 competitors.
For Brest, this is nothing short of a miracle.
Brest is not a powerhouse. In the past four seasons, they hovered around 14th place in Ligue 1, narrowly avoiding relegation in the 2020-21 season.
At the start of the 21st century, Brest was still oscillating between the French second and third divisions, with no aspirations for the Champions League, let alone Ligue 1.
In the final round, a miracle occurred when Nice scored a last-minute equalizer in the 94th minute, effectively securing Brest's Champions League spot.
Next season, Brest might face giants like Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, and Barcelona—a great inspirational story from a Ligue 1 relegation candidate to the Champions League group stage.
For the club, the Champions League means substantial revenue, at least 30 million euros!
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