NK Maribor in European football

The club's most recent participation in a continental competition was in the 2024–25 season, when they played in the play-off round of the 2024–25 UEFA Conference League.

[1][2] Maribor won their only European honour in 2006, when they defeated Villarreal in the third round of the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup, becoming one of the eleven co-winners of the competition.

Maribor were eliminated in the first round by the Austrian side Grazer AK on away goals rule, having won 3–1 at home and lost 2–0 away.

Maribor were the inaugural winners of the Slovenian Cup, where they defeated their biggest rivals Olimpija in the final.

[16] Maribor lost the remaining two matches against two Scandinavian teams, København and Örebro, and finished in third place with four points.

[23] In the return leg in Amsterdam, Maribor suffered their heaviest defeat in the European football, as Ajax won the match 9–1.

At Ljudski vrt, Peter Breznik scored in the 83rd minute for 2–1, and gave Maribor one goal advantage before visiting the Philips Stadion in Eindhoven.

[26] Again, they continued in the UEFA Cup, and as in the previous season were eliminated in the first round, this time by Wisła Kraków, losing both games.

[29] In the second leg in Belgium, Genk were leading 3–0 and Maribor were down to ten players as Amir Karić was sent off, but the team managed to hold on and advanced 5–4 on aggregate.

[10] In the second leg, Maribor defeated the French side 2–0, with goals from Ante Šimundža and Stipe Balajić in the first half, and the club reached the group stages for the first time.

The decline of the club in European competitions started in the 2000–01 season, when Maribor were surprisingly knocked out of the Champions League in the second qualifying round by Zimbru Chişinău from Moldova.

[39] In the return leg, Nastja Čeh scored the only goal of the game in the third minute, and Zimbru eliminated Maribor 2–1 on aggregate.

The match in Maribor ended 1–1, while in the second leg in Zagreb, the Croatian champions won 2–1 and advanced to the third qualifying round.

[47] To reach the first round, Maribor eliminated Sileks from Macedonia and Budućnost Banatski Dvor from Serbia and Montenegro in the qualifying stages.

In the first round, Maribor defeated Sant Julià from Andorra, before eliminating Zeta who competed under the flag of newly established Montenegro.

In the second round of the competition, the team lost 5–0 in the second leg against Hajduk Kula after winning the first match 2–0, being eliminated 5–2 on aggregate.

[54] After losing the 2007–08 Slovenian Cup final to Interblock, Maribor lost their place in European competitions for the 2008–09 season.

[59] They next played Zürich, and unexpectedly won the first match 3–2 at Letzigrund; Zoran Pavlović scored the third goal directly from a corner kick and later missed a penalty.

[68] Josip Iličić, who scored three goals during the European campaign, and Armin Bačinović both transferred to Palermo just one day after the match.

[80][81] Maribor started their 2013–14 European campaign in the second qualifying round of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League with a 2–0 aggregate victory over Birkirkara from Malta.

[84] However, Maribor once again lost in the play-off round and continued their European season in the group stages of the Europa League for the third time in a row.

[85] On 19 September 2013, the team played its first match in the group stage of the Europa League and were defeated by the Russian side Rubin Kazan.

[86] On 24 October 2013, Maribor defeated Zulte Waregem 3–1 in Belgium, securing their first ever away victory in the Europa League group stages.

[87] On 12 December 2013, Maribor defeated Wigan Athletic 2–1 and progressed beyond the group stage of a European competition for the first time, finishing second with seven points from six games.

[88][89] In the Round of 32, Maribor played in a two-legged tie against the Spanish side Sevilla (who later won the competition) and lost 3–2 on aggregate.

Led by former Maribor player Ante Šimundža, they eliminated Zrinjski Mostar, Maccabi Tel Aviv, and Celtic in the qualifying phase.

[99] After a goalless draw in the first leg at home, Maribor eliminated Levski on the away goals rule with an aggregate score of 1–1.

[113] In March 2020, Zahovič resigned as Maribor's Director of Football; in his 13 years with the club, Maribor experienced its most successful period in European football, reaching the Europa League group stages three times and the Champions League group stages twice.

[114] In the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League, Maribor were surprisingly eliminated in the first qualifying round by the semi-professional Northern Irish team Coleraine on penalties, which led to the dismissal of manager Sergej Jakirović.

In European football, the UEFA coefficients are statistics used for ranking and seeding teams in club and international competitions.