Lokomotiv Moscow qualified for the round of 16 of the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League, where they met AS Monaco. Lokomotiv won the home match 2–1, but lost on away goals after Monaco won the second leg 1–0.
Spartak Moscow qualified for the third round of the 2003–04 UEFA Cup, where they lost 3–1 on aggregate to RCD Mallorca.
Spartak Moscow started in the first round of the UEFA Intertoto Cup 2004 and defeated FK Atlantas and NK Kamen Ingrad. Shinnik Yaroslavl started in the second round and defeated FK Teplice. Both Spartak and Shinnik were knocked out in the third round by Villarreal CF and UD Leiria, respectively.
CSKA Moscow were the only Russian club to play in the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League. They started in the second qualifying round and reached the group stage by beating PFC Neftchi and Rangers F.C. In Group H, they finished third behind Chelsea F.C. and Futebol Clube do Porto but ahead of Paris Saint-Germain F.C. The third position allowed CSKA to qualify for the 2004–05 UEFA Cup, a competition they eventually won.
Terek Grozny (as the Russian Cup winners), Zenit Saint Petersburg and Rubin Kazan started in the second qualifying round of the 2004–05 UEFA Cup. Terek and Zenit qualified for the first round by defeating Lech Poznań and SV Pasching, respectively, while Rubin were knocked out by SK Rapid Wien. In the first round, Terek lost to FC Basel, and Zenit beat Red Star Belgrade and reached the group stage. In the group with Lille OSC, Sevilla FC, Alemannia Aachen, and AEK Athens, Zenit finished fourth and were eliminated.
