What to look out for as Women’s Champions League returns

This week, the Women’s Champions League returns, but not as you’d expect.

With tough matches being handed out to all three English representatives this year, the inaugural league phase begins.

Chelsea, the women’s Super League champion, and Manchester United, who are defending champions after qualifying, will join them.

15 other clubs from across Europe will compete for the trophy in Oslo, Norway, in May, in addition to the English contingent.

There is plenty to look forward to, from Chelsea’s trip to Barcelona to Paris St-Germain’s Mary Earps’ return to the club.

This year’s Women’s Champions League transitions from a group to a league phase, following the men’s tournament’s lead.

It’s similar to the men’s competition, but there are some changes for those who have already followed it.

There are 18 teams instead of 36, which means that there are no last 16 and that first phase teams only play six games.

The next eight teams, which will face off in two-legged play-offs to determine who will join them, will automatically advance to the quarter-finals, with the winners going from first to fourth.

On paper… good!

After defeating Barcelona twice in May, Arsenal are undoubtedly the defending champions.

The Gunners travel to Lyon for a difficult opener, and they also have Real Madrid to face, two rivals they defeated last season when they fought to win the title.

Renee Slegers’ side have had a difficult start to the season, but they will start with a three-game winless run against Tuesday.

The Champions League has so far proved difficult for Chelsea.

Five games into the campaign, Sonia Bompastor’s side are now at the top of the WSL table having won every domestic title.

However, they lost to Barcelona in the two-legged Champions League semi-finals last term 8-2, and now face the Spanish side in perhaps the most visually stunning match of the season.

Sam Kerr has returned to fitness after 20 months out with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, while Champions League champion Ellie Carpenter and American international Alyssa Thompson have been added to an already strong squad.

This trophy is what Chelsea wants above all else.

Manchester United enters this competition with goals that are different from those of Chelsea and Arsenal, but they will still strive to advance as far as they can.

They qualified for the main draw for the first time after two rounds of qualifying.

United will play PSG, which will result in a reunion with goalkeeper Earps and former champions Lyon and Wolfsburg, who are unbeaten in the WSL this season.

Since United lacks the depth to compete on all fronts, Marc Skinner has already made his desire to strengthen his squad for the winter.

Lyon (h) on Tuesday, October 7th.

Benfica (a) on Thursday, October 16th.

Bayern Munich (a) on Wednesday, November 12th.

Real Madrid (h) on Wednesday, November 19th.

Tuesday, December 9th, at Twente (h)

Tuesday, October 8th, Twente (a)

Paris FC (h) on Wednesday, October 15th.

St. Polten (a) on Tuesday, November 11th.

Barcelona on Thursday, November 20th, (h)

Roma on Wednesday, December 10th.

Valerenga (h) on Wednesday, October 8th.

Atletico Madrid (a) on Thursday, October 16th.

Paris St-Germain (h) on Wednesday, November 12th.

Wolfsburg (a) on Wednesday, November 19th.

Lyon (10 December) on Wednesday, December 10th.

The Catalans have won three of their previous five finals and are made up of three-time Ballon d’Or winners Aitana Bonmati.

Liga F was completely destroyed by last year’s runners-up, who won just one game and scored 30 goals in their first six games.

Lyon have won this competition eight times, most recently under Bompastor, in 2022. They are another team at the top of the French league who will be interested in a long run.

When the teams meet in the league phase, they will be looking for revenge after being defeated by eventual champions Arsenal in the semi-finals.

Bayern Munich, the reigning champion of Germany, has a squad that can only go so far in their history.

Bayern defeated Arsenal in the group stages of last year’s campaign, but Lyon sent them to the quarter-finals.

Lena Oberdorf, a talented midfielder, will return to action after suffering an ACL injury and will play alongside Georgia Stanway of England.

The Women’s Champions League this year has a lot to look forward to.

Belgian champions OH Leuven, who are making their debut alongside Manchester United, are also playing. They have been given big-name matches against PSG, Barcelona, and Arsenal.

The men’s Champions League inaugural phase of the league phase last year produced a lot of surprises.

Real Madrid, the defending champion, came in 11th place, Manchester City, the champion of 2023, and Paris St-Germain, the eventual champion, came in 15th.

Meanwhile, teams like Lille and Aston Villa did better than expected to automatically advance to the last 16.

Could the women’s competition also produce the same kind of surprises?

Steph Houghton, a former England defender, stated to BBC Football Focus, “I think it’s going to be tough playing these games away and in the Champions League.”

Women’s Champions League broadcasting from this season will be a five-year contract with BBC Sport.

Each season will be streamed on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, and the BBC Sport website and app, with the exception of the final match.

Manchester United’s match against Paris St-Germain at Old Trafford on November 12 will be the first game to be shown, followed by Chelsea’s encounter with Barcelona on November 20.

One semi-final and four matches from earlier will be played in addition to the other matches.