Title holder Barcelona gets rematch of 2025 final with Arsenal in Women's Champions League draw

Barcelona, the reigning champion of the Women’s Champions League, will face Arsenal in a repeat of the 2025 final in their bid to retain the title. This announcement came after the draw for the 18-team league was made on Friday in Nyon, Switzerland. Barcelona has experienced a season of transition following the departure of two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas and other prominent Spanish players during the offseason.

However, the Catalan giants have been given a beneficial schedule, beginning their campaign this month against six opponents.

Among Barcelona’s home matches are fixtures against Paris FC and Servette. The club will also travel to play against top-tier opponents Bayern Munich, Roma, and HB Køge from Denmark. On the other side of the draw, Arsenal has been assigned to host eight-time champions OL Lyonnes, Benfica, and Køge, while they will also take on Paris FC and Inter Milan away.

OL Lyonnes, who were the defeated finalists in May, will visit Arsenal, Juventus, and Servette, and host Chelsea, Häcken, and Inter Milan in return. In terms of home matches, Arsenal will face Chelsea, Häcken, and Inter Milan, while traveling to confront Bayern, Häcken, and Inter Milan.

The Women’s Champions League phase will commence on September 22 and continue until December 16, with the top four teams advancing directly to the quarterfinals in March. The remaining clubs, ranked fifth through 12th, will participate in the knockout playoffs in February. The final will be held at Warsaw’s national stadium in Poland later in May.

The total UEFA prize money fund for the 18 participating teams amounts to 18.2 million euros ($21.2 million), with each club receiving a guaranteed sum of 505,000 euros ($587,000). For the second-tier Women’s Europa Cup, the prize pool totals 5.6 million euros ($6.5 million), and Häcken emerged as the victor in last year's competition.