Charleroi played host to Rayo Vallecano in a Club Friendly on 1st August 2026, and the visitors found a way back into it to win 3-2. The match finished with Rayo taking all three points despite Charleroi's early advantage.
R. Nteka opened the scoring for the hosts at the 24th minute, and by then Charleroi looked comfortable. Rayo responded through F. Perez at 61 minutes, and A. Scheidler made it 2-1 just three minutes later. And here's the thing — it was never really in doubt after that point.
Charleroi pulled one back through N. Solheid at 78 minutes, and the match stayed lively until the end. The final goal came at 90+3 minutes, though the scorer was not recorded. There were seven yellow cards in total, with three going to Charleroi and four to Rayo.
Both sides shared possession evenly at 50 per cent, but Charleroi generated more attacks with 97 compared to Rayo's 85. The hosts also earned seven corners to Rayo's one, and there were 14 free kicks for Charleroi against 19 for the visitors. To be fair, the attacking numbers don't tell the whole story of who created the better chances.
Charleroi have been busy in pre-season, with results including a 2-1 win over Serin United and a 2-2 draw with Lance in late July. Rayo arrived with mixed form, having lost to Feyenoord and Hearts of Midlothian in their recent friendlies.
The result gives Rayo Vallecano something to build on ahead of their campaign, while Charleroi will look at how they let a lead slip away. Three or four moments decided this game, and everything else was just background noise.