Competition Preparations Underway for Restyled UEFA Women's Champions League
The UEFA Women's Champions League (UWCL) is set to kick off its 2025/26 season with a fresh format, mirroring the men's Real Madrid Champions League last year. The competition proper has expanded from 16 to 18 teams, and the league phase will replace the old group stage format.
The 18 teams have been divided, with nine direct entrants from top leagues and nine from the qualifying rounds. The nine direct entrants include the defending champions, Arsenal, the English champions, Chelsea, and the French top two, OL Lyonnes and Paris Saint-Germain. Other direct entrants are the German frontrunners, Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg, Barcelona, the Italian champions, Juventus, and the Portuguese title-holders, Benfica.
The qualifiers include Atlético Madrid, Paris FC, Manchester United, Real Madrid, AS Roma, Norwegian champions Vålerenga, Belgian side OH Leuven, Austria's SKN St. Pölten, and FC Twente of the Netherlands.
The teams are separated into three pots of six based on their UEFA club coefficient rankings for the draw. Manchester United and Atlético Madrid, both in Pot 3, have been given tough Real Madrid Champions League fixture lists in the league phase. Real Madrid in Pot 2 faces serious tests, while St. Pölten in Pot 2 have a huge uphill battle. The English sides in Pot 1 are the most confident, while the German pair in Pot 1 have a tough run ahead.
In the new format, teams will no longer be divided into groups but will face off in a single league phase. Each team is drawn against two opponents from each pot, facing one at home and the other away, for six league phase fixtures. The top four teams at the end of the league phase earn a direct quarterfinal spot.
Teams placed from 5th to 12th enter the knockout phase play-offs. The winners of the knockout phase play-offs advance to the quarterfinals. The standard knockout format remains in place for the last three rounds, including the final, which will be held at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, Norway.
The league phase draw sees teams from different pots facing off, with some teams getting relatively straightforward tests, while others will have to face many tough battles. The qualifying rounds have expanded and introduced the UEFA Women's Europa Cup.
The UWCL has increased from 16 to 18 teams in the competition proper. The participating teams in Group 3 of the league phase have not yet been officially announced or detailed in the available sources.
In the knockout phase play-offs, an opponent is faced home and away in the standard two-legged format. The final for the 2025/26 UWCL season will be held at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, Norway.
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