Lugano vs CFR Cluj: Europa League Prediction (25.07.2025)

On Thursday, July 25 at 01:30 WIB, the Stadio di Cornaredo in Lugano will host the first leg of the UEFA Europa League 2025–2026 qualifying tie between local side Lugano and CFR Cluj. The Swiss hosts secured a spot in this qualifying round by finishing fourth in the Swiss Super League. Meanwhile, the visitors not only claimed the silver medal in Romania’s SuperLiga but also defeated Hungarian side Paksi in the previous qualifying round.

Bookmakers see no clear favorite in the first leg between Lugano and Cluj. A win for the Bianconeri is priced at 2.43, a draw at 3.22, and a win for the Railwaymen at 2.88. However, CFR Cluj are slightly favored to advance to the next stage, with their qualification odds at 1.76 compared to Lugano’s 2.00. The over 2.5 goals market is at 2.04, indicating expectations of below-average scoring. Both teams to score is priced at 1.79.

Lugano

Mattia Croci-Torti’s team plays defensively and struggles significantly in attack. In the most recent Swiss Super League season, Lugano were the only team in the championship group with a negative goal difference of 55:58. Notably, no other side in the top six scored fewer than 60 goals.

The match against the Romanian club will be Lugano’s first official game of the new season. Preparation has taken place through friendlies with other Swiss teams. Notably, Lugano lost 2–4 to Thun, the strongest of their preseason opponents. Interestingly, between their two legs against CFR Cluj, Lugano will also face Thun again in the opening round of the domestic league.

CFR Cluj

Dan Petrescu’s side began their new season in the first week of July, losing the Romanian Super Cup to Steaua Bucharest. In the first two rounds of the national league, they collected four points by beating Unirea Slobozia 2–1 at home and drawing 1–1 away to Rapid Bucharest.

The Railwaymen also failed to beat modest Hungarian side Paksi away (0–0), but dominated them at home with a 3–0 victory in the Europa League qualifiers. This reflects the Romanian side’s ongoing difficulty in away matches.

Stats and Head-to-Head Record

This will be the first-ever competitive meeting between Lugano and CFR Cluj.

Prediction

Neither side is known for high scoring. We give a slight edge to the home team: Lugano not to lose and under 3.5 total goals at odds of 1.82.