LASK - SCR Altach: the champion welcomes a tricky opponent from Vorarlberg
LASK and SCR Altach meet in the 5th round of the Austrian Bundesliga at the Raiffeisen Arena in Linz. The match is scheduled for 29 August 2026 at 19:30, and the home side enters the game as the reigning champion and winner of the Austrian Cup. Altach, on the other hand, arrives as a team that played one of its biggest matches in recent history against LASK just a few months ago.
At the time of writing, LASK has nine points after three league matches with a goal difference of 9:1. It defeated GAK 3:0, FK Austria Wien 2:0 and SV Oberbank Ried 4:1. SCR Altach has three points after three appearances, with a 3:1 victory against WSG Tirol and 0:1 defeats to SK Rapid and SK Sturm Graz. This means that the team from Linz has opened the championship with a perfect record, while Altach is showing defensive solidity in the opening weeks of the season, but also a problem converting good phases of play into points.
It is worth securing tickets in good time. This match comes early in the season, but it has enough sporting context to be much more than a routine league fixture.
What is at stake for LASK and SCR Altach
LASK ended the 2025/26 season by winning the league and cup, and Dietmar Kühbauer remained on the bench for the new season. On 18 August, the club announced that it had extended his contract until the end of the 2028/29 season. The start of the championship suggests that the team has not lost momentum: three victories, nine goals scored and only one goal conceded give the home side a very clear starting position.
However, the schedule around the match against Altach is not simple. LASK plays the European return leg against Celtic FC on 25 August, just four days before the league match. The first game in Glasgow ended in a 0:3 defeat for LASK, so the physical and mental demands between those two matches will be an important factor. In addition, the league away match at RZ Pellets WAC, scheduled for the 4th round, has been moved to 1 September. LASK will therefore play the 5th round against Altach with one league match fewer played.
Altach has a different rhythm. Ognjen Zaric's team plays at home against TSV Egger Glas Hartberg on 22 August, and the result of that match was not yet known at the time of writing. Before that round, Altach is eighth with three points. For the visitors, the match in Linz is an opportunity to confirm that they can take points even against teams from the top of the table.
Early picture of the season
- LASK: 3 matches, 3 victories, 9 points, goal difference 9:1.
- SCR Altach: 3 matches, 1 victory, 2 defeats, 3 points, goal difference 3:3.
- LASK won its first two league home matches against GAK 3:0 and SV Oberbank Ried 4:1.
- Altach recorded its only victory so far against WSG Tirol by a score of 3:1.
- LASK plays a European return leg before Altach, while its 4th-round league match against WAC has been moved to 1 September.
Samuel Adeniran and Moses Usor carry the main attacking threat for LASK
The biggest early threat in the home team is Samuel Adeniran. After three league matches, he has four goals and one assist. In the 4:1 victory against Ried he scored twice, while alongside him Moses Usor particularly stands out with two goals and two assists. Christoph Lang is also on two league goals.
That distribution of output is important because LASK does not depend on only one type of attack. Adeniran finishes moves inside the penalty area, Usor provides depth and acceleration, while Lang increases the number of players capable of deciding a match. Melayro Bogarde already has two assists, and Kasper Jörgensen has one.
Against Ried, LASK responded quickly and aggressively after conceding an early goal. Adeniran equalised just two minutes after falling behind, Usor then scored to complete the turnaround, and the home side led 3:1 by half-time. That kind of reaction describes well why this team is dangerous: when it loses the ball or concedes a goal, it does not have to change its entire plan to regain control.
At the other end of the pitch, Lukas Jungwirth has played all three league rounds, conceded only one goal and kept two clean sheets. In front of him, LASK has used a structure with three central defenders and wide players who can push high up the pitch. Andres Andrade, Xavier Mbuyamba and Joao Tornich form the defensive framework, while George Bello and Jörgensen provide width.
Altach: fewer goals, but enough reasons for caution
Altach's attacking output in the first three rounds is concentrated in the match against WSG Tirol. Patrick Greil scored twice in that game, while Yann Massombo scored once. Greil is therefore the team's leading scorer after three league appearances with two goals.
More important than the 3:1 score itself was how Altach achieved the victory. After falling behind early, it equalised through Greil, turned the match around with Massombo's goal, and Greil confirmed the victory late on. In the 0:1 away defeat at Sturm Graz, Altach showed another side of its game: it had less possession, but won 55.6 percent of the duels and 65.7 percent of the aerial duels. That is a warning for LASK, particularly if the match becomes physical and if the home side, after its European fixture, wants to reduce the tempo.
In the opening league rounds, Zaric relied on Dejan Stojanovic in goal and Lukas Jäger, Benedikt Zech, Filip Milojevic and Benjamin Böckle in the back line. Mike Bähre and Vesel Demaku are important in midfield, with Greil and Massombo further forward.
Altach is not a team that needs to have the ball to be dangerous. In Linz, it can accept phases without possession, close down the middle and wait for a mistake from the home side. The match in Graz showed that it is capable of remaining competitively alive against a strong opponent even when it does not have statistical dominance.
The May final and head-to-head meetings give the match additional significance
LASK and Altach do not enter this match without fresh shared memories. On 1 May 2026, they played the Austrian Cup final in Klagenfurt. Altach led twice, first through a goal from Patrick Greil and then Vesel Demaku. LASK equalised twice through Moses Usor and Samuel Adeniran, and in extra time George Bello and Adeniran completed the turnaround for 4:2.
That match is important when assessing the new league meeting. Altach showed that it can find space against LASK, while LASK showed greater depth and quality in the final third. Several key protagonists from that final remain important for both teams.
The last five competitive head-to-head matches also show that Altach is not an opponent LASK can treat as a formality:
- 1 May 2026: LASK - SCR Altach 4:2 after extra time, Austrian Cup final.
- 9 November 2025: LASK - SCR Altach 1:0, Austrian Bundesliga.
- 13 September 2025: SCR Altach - LASK 1:0, Austrian Bundesliga.
- 23 May 2025: LASK - SCR Altach 0:0, Austrian Bundesliga.
- 28 March 2025: SCR Altach - LASK 0:2, Austrian Bundesliga.
In that run, LASK has three victories, Altach one, while one match ended without a winner. More importantly, three of those five matches ended after the regular 90 minutes with no more than a one-goal margin or without any goals. The May final was an exception in terms of the number of goals, but it confirmed how troublesome Altach can be when it takes the lead first.
Tactical duel: LASK wants width and pressure, Altach solidity and transitions
For LASK, the key question will be how much freshness remains after the European return leg. Kühbauer's team can attack with many players, especially when Bello and Jörgensen push their positions higher and Usor moves into the space behind the defensive line. Sascha Horvath and Robert Ljubicic are important for the rhythm in midfield, while Adeniran looks for finishing opportunities in and around the penalty area.
If LASK's wide players remain high, Altach can try to bypass the first wave of pressure and quickly look for Greil or Massombo. In the cup final, it already showed that it knows how to punish a poorly controlled second ball.
For the visitors, the opening phase of the match will be particularly important. In the home victory against Ried, LASK showed that it can turn one recovered ball into a clear chance very quickly. Altach can therefore hardly afford a series of lost balls in its own half. On the other hand, if the visitors keep the match level until the middle of the second half, fatigue for the home side and the possibility of rotations after the European schedule could become increasingly important.
One of the key duels will be Adeniran against Altach's centre-backs. The LASK striker enters the match as the home side's leading scorer, while Zech and Jäger are important in physical duels.
Raiffeisen Arena: what to expect in the stands
The Raiffeisen Arena is located at Ziegeleistraße 76 in Linz and has a total capacity of 19,080 spectators. The home supporters' stand for domestic matches accommodates approximately 4,500 standing spectators. There were 14,507 spectators at the league home match against Ried on 14 August, which gives a good indication of how strong an atmosphere LASK can have even in the early stages of the season.
The stands are close to the pitch, and the home section behind the goal produces a large share of the noise. Altach already played in front of more than 14,000 spectators in Graz in the 3rd round, so the size of the crowd itself will not be a new experience.
For visitors travelling to Linz, it is more useful to plan their arrival around public transport than to try to park directly next to the stadium.
Arrival and parking
- Raiffeisen Arena: Ziegeleistraße 76, 4020 Linz.
- There are no free parking spaces around the stadium that can be relied upon for regular arrival at the match.
- On match days, city services increase bus traffic towards the stadium area.
- For drivers, around 1,300 spaces are available in city garages under a special match-day arrangement.
- The listed garages include Garage am Bahnhof, Raiffeisen Garage Südbahnhof, City Parkhaus, Garage im Zentrum and Elisabeth Garage.
If arriving by train, the main railway station is a practical starting point for continuing by city transport towards the stadium. For those who are in the city centre earlier, another useful reference point is Taubenmarkt, from where transport towards the Botanischer Garten area and the stadium is increased on match days.
The exact opening time of the entrances for the match against Altach had not been specifically confirmed at the time of writing. In previous LASK information for home matches, the fan zone opened three hours before kick-off and the inside of the stadium an hour and a half before kick-off. For this fixture, it is therefore sensible to plan an earlier arrival and leave enough time for entrance checks.
Seats in the stands sell out quickly. Especially for travellers who want a specific section, arriving without a plan on the day of the match carries unnecessary risk.
Linz before and after the match
The Raiffeisen Arena is located in the Gugl area, south of the central part of Linz. The city is compact enough for the match to be combined with time in the centre without the need for long transfers. Hauptplatz, the Danube riverfront and the old town area are located in the part of the city from which it is possible to continue towards the stadium by public transport.
For supporters arriving from another city, it is practical to leave the car in one of the city garages or arrive by train, and complete the final part of the journey by public transport.
The atmosphere should build as the 19:30 kick-off approaches. LASK is defending a domestic league-and-cup double this season, Altach arrives motivated against the team that denied it a trophy in May, and their recent head-to-head meetings have often been tighter than the difference in the clubs' status alone might suggest.
Ticket sales for this match are under way. For spectators in the stands, it will be particularly worth watching how much LASK rotates the squad after the European return leg, whether Altach tries to press high or drops into a more compact block, and whether Patrick Greil can once again find space against a defence he already punished in the cup final.
Sources:
- bundesliga.at - current standings, results of the first three rounds, line-ups, duel statistics and head-to-head matches.
- LASK - schedule, player statistics, match reports against Ried and Celtic FC and information about coach Dietmar Kühbauer.
- SCR Altach - schedule, coach Ognjen Zaric, report on the victory against WSG Tirol and current team information.
- ORF Sport - result and course of the Austrian Cup final between LASK and SCR Altach.
- Raiffeisen Oberösterreich - capacity of the Raiffeisen Arena, arrival information, parking and stadium information.
- Linz Tourismus - address of the Raiffeisen Arena and practical information for arriving in the stadium area.