Inter Club d'Escaldes have made history by becoming the first club from Andorra to reach the group stage of a European competition, when they won a UEFA Conference League play‑off against Kosovo side Drita. The triumph, which was sealed by a penalty from striker Faysal Chouaib, marks a milestone for the tiny nation and for the club’s young defender Maurizio Pochettino, who has joined the side in August 2025.
Pochettino, 25, grew up watching Spanish club Espanyol and dreamed of playing in Europe. He has spent his career in the English lower leagues and in Spain’s semi‑professional third and fourth tiers before signing for Inter. “It feels like it hasn’t sunk in yet,” he told BBC Sport. “For such a small country, such a small league that isn’t known around Europe… it’s a dream come true.” The club’s qualification is seen as a turning point for Andorran football, which has traditionally been overlooked on the continental stage.
Inter Club d'Escaldes were founded in 1991 and entered Andorra’s top flight in 1995. After a period of decline that saw the club relegated in 2015, new ownership in 2017 brought a revival that culminated in the club’s first league title in 2019‑20. Since then, Inter have won five titles in seven seasons, breaking the long‑standing dominance of FC Santa Coloma. The club’s boardroom has included Ildefons Lima, the former national team captain who holds the record for most appearances in men’s football history. Lima, who stepped down after retiring in 2023, praised the achievement as proof that reaching the Conference League’s final stages is a realistic goal for Andorran clubs.
Under the stewardship of manager Felip Ortiz, a former Barcelona youth player, Inter have adopted a possession‑based style that has paid dividends. Ortiz said that the club’s European qualification “shows it is possible for people to believe that reaching the final stages of the Conference League is a realistic objective.” He also highlighted that the club’s success could attract more talent to the league, making it more competitive.
The club’s entry into the group stage is expected to bring in over €3 million in revenue, roughly 2.5 times its annual budget. Andorra is now the 12th nation to have a club qualify for a European competition for the first time since the Conference League’s inception in 2021, joining San Marino and Montenegro as the only UEFA members yet to achieve this. The success also lifts Andorra into the top 50 of UEFA’s club coefficient rankings, meaning that four Andorran clubs will enter European qualifiers next summer.
Inter’s European campaign will begin with a trip to Swedish champions Mjallby, followed by matches against Red Star Belgrade, FC Copenhagen and La Liga side Getafe. Pochettino expressed confidence in the squad’s ability to compete against teams with larger budgets, stating, “We know it will be a massive challenge playing against some great teams with much bigger budgets than us, but we also believe in ourselves.” The club’s historic qualification is seen as a catalyst for the growth of Andorran football, offering a blueprint for other clubs in the small nation to aspire to continental competition.