"I think this story about the TV quiz is a little overrated," Valdas Dambrauskas told Euronews after he became the first Baltic coach to reach the Champions League main round, leading a club that did not exist nine years ago to fixtures against Arsenal, Manchester United and Barcelona. In 2002, Dambrauskas won the prize money on the Lithuanian television show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" and used it to move to England to fund his UEFA coaching badges. He had no professional football background.
To pay for the courses, he worked as a babysitter, salesman and newspaper delivery man. He eventually got into the youth academies at Fulham, Brentford and Manchester United. Sabah FC in Baku is his 10th club.
"Sometimes it was difficult. I had to work hard, and sometimes to believe when myself and those around me were doubting," Dambrauskas recalled. "I take this achievement as a milestone and believe that journey is more important.
There are other dreams ahead and I really don't want to stop." Sabah beat Hapoel Beer Sheva 5-2 last Tuesday — 6-4 on aggregate — to reach the Champions League main round, guaranteeing eight matches against European football's biggest clubs. Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund, Napoli and Slavia Prague will come to Baku. Dambrauskas and his squad travel to Arsenal and Manchester United in England, then to Villarreal in Spain and Viking in Norway.
Dambrauskas was equally clear-eyed about what comes next. "Everyone is speaking about the Champions League, but the Azerbaijan championship is what allows you to play there. It is very important we keep the focus and prepare for every game that we are going to play," he said.
"We have a fantastic international environment where a lot of times we select eleven different nationalities in the starting line-up. In this kind of environment the main word we base our philosophy on is respect." Sabah Futbol Klubu were founded in Baku in 2017. They won the Azerbaijan Cup in the 2024-25 season and the Azerbaijan Premier League title the following year, ending Qarabağ FK's domestic dominance.
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