From the start of the 2025/26 season, the UEFA Women’s Champions League will follow a new format similar to the new men’s competition starting next season.
The women’s competition was first played in 2001 under the name UEFA Women’s Cup, but was renamed the Champions League in the 2009/10 season. French club Lyon is the most successful team in the competition with eight titles so far.
In December 2023, UEFA’s Executive Committee approved a new format, which included the introduction of a second European women’s club competition. This means that new teams will be able to enter and some will be kicked out of the Champions League and will try a second time to get silverware.
The first competition will be a single league consisting of 18 teams, which also allows more teams to compete. This means that the teams will no longer play three opponents twice as part of the group stage, instead they will face six different teams in the league stage, playing half of those away from home and half of them at home.
Teams will be ranked in three seeding pots based on their club-coefficient level and will play two competitors in each pot. The results will then determine the overall ranking, with the standard three points for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss.
The top four teams in the league will book a place in the quarter-finals, while those in fifth to 12th place will compete in two-leg playoffs to book a place in the last 8.
Those who finish in 13th place or below are eliminated without the possibility of advancing to the final stages. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals will follow the regular format of the tournament.
READ THE LATEST FOOTBALL NEWS, VIEWS AND ANALYSIS
Source link
