From ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’ contestant to Champions League history-maker
Valdas Dambrauskas has completed one of the most unusual journeys in football, moving from appearing on a Lithuanian television quiz show as a young student to becoming a Champions League manager.
The 49-year-old Lithuanian is now in the spotlight after guiding Azerbaijani club Sabah FK to the league phase of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the club’s history.
Dambrauskas’ journey into football management began in an unconventional way. In 2002, when he was 25 and still a student, he appeared on a Lithuanian television quiz programme similar to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and won 4,000 Lithuanian litas.
Rather than treating the money simply as a windfall, Dambrauskas used it to help fund his move to England, where he pursued studies in Sports Science and Coaching at London Metropolitan University.
At the time, Dambrauskas had never played professional football. His ambition was to become a coach, meaning he had to build his career through education, coaching qualifications and practical experience rather than a professional playing career.
While in England, he gained experience within the youth systems of prominent clubs including Manchester United, Fulham and Brentford. He later took charge of Kingsbury London Tigers, beginning his senior coaching career in the lower levels of English football.
His career gradually developed as he worked in several countries and took charge of clubs in Lithuania, Latvia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Cyprus and Hungary.
One of the notable stages of his career came at Bulgarian club Ludogorets, while his coaching journey also included a spell with Croatian giants Hajduk Split.
Dambrauskas eventually moved to Azerbaijan, where he took charge of Sabah FK in 2025. His impact was immediate, as he guided the club to its first national league title and a domestic double during his first season in charge.
The biggest achievement, however, came in August 2026 when Sabah secured a place in the Champions League league phase.
Sabah entered the qualifying rounds and progressed through a difficult campaign before facing Hapoel Be’er Sheva in the play-offs. After losing the first leg 2-1, the Azerbaijani side produced a dramatic comeback in the return match, winning 5-2 after extra time to advance 6-4 on aggregate.
The result secured Champions League football for Sabah for the first time in the club’s history and also made Dambrauskas the first Lithuanian coach to reach the competition’s league phase.
His remarkable rise has attracted attention because of the unusual starting point of his career. More than two decades after appearing on a television quiz programme, Dambrauskas now finds himself preparing to lead a Champions League team against some of Europe’s biggest clubs.
His story demonstrates how an unexpected opportunity can become the starting point for a much bigger ambition. What began with a television appearance and a modest financial prize eventually helped set him on a path that took him through football academies, lower-league management and clubs across Europe.
Now, Dambrauskas has reached the biggest stage of European club football with Sabah, completing an extraordinary journey from quiz-show contestant to Champions League history-maker.
Source: Thepressradio.com
