Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City are battling it out for a spot in the Women’s Champions League alongside Chelsea for next season. Here, we look at the state of play, the run-in and how the competition will look in 2025/26…
WSL race for top three – the current state of play
There are four games left to play in the WSL, which returns this weekend, live on Sky Sports, after the international break and FA Cup semi-final fixtures.
Arsenal and Man Utd are level on 42 points – six points behind unbeaten leaders Chelsea – with the Gunners’ superior goal difference seeing them sit in second.
But Marc Skinner’s United side have a seven-point lead over Man City, who are in fourth place after a difficult season.
What are the run-ins like?
Domestically, Arsenal have the most favourable run-in. They face two of the WSL’s bottom three – Leicester, live on Sky Sports on Tuesday, and Aston Villa – as well as Brighton in their upcoming fixtures.
And it could be a WSL final-day showdown for second and third as they host Man Utd at the Emirates on Saturday May 10.
Tuesday 15th April 7:00pm
Kick off 7:30pm
The Gunners also have a Women’s Champions League semi-final against Lyon to navigate in between those fixtures – something their rivals do not.
Man Utd’s trip to Arsenal concludes a tricky end-of-season run. They play each of the other top-four sides in their final games, with home matches against Chelsea and Man City before their trip to Arsenal.
Up next though is another trip to London to face an in-form West Ham, who drew 2-2 with Chelsea in their last WSL outing. Seventeen of the Hammers’ 19 points this season have come at home too.
Man City also have a kind run-in, and will need to win each game if they are to catch Man Utd. Three of their final four games are against teams currently in eighth place and below – Everton, Leicester and Crystal Palace – as well as a Manchester derby on May 4.
What about Chelsea?
Chelsea have a six-point gap at the top of the WSL and are on course for a sixth successive title. Finishing first would send them straight into next season’s Women’s Champions League league phase.
Mathematically, the Blues cannot finish outside of the top three. They are 13 points clear of Man City in fourth with 12 points still available.
Chelsea are on course for another WSL title and their first under Sonia Bompastor
They are also in the 2024/25 Women’s Champions League semi-finals, along with Arsenal, where they face Barcelona.
If either WSL side win the competition, they also automatically qualify for the following season’s league-phase stage, meaning Arsenal could bypass the qualification process entirely.
What will the Women’s Champions League look like next season?
The men’s Champions League changed to a new ‘league phase’ format this season. The Women’s Champions League will follow for the 2025/26 campaign.
The league phase will be expanded to 18 teams – two more than currently compete in the group-stage format – with each team playing six different opponents in three home and three away games. The sides will be ranked in one overall table.
The top four sides in the league phase will go straight into the quarter-finals. Clubs finishing in fifth to 12th place will compete in a two-legged knockout-phase play-off to secure their spot in the last eight. The remaining teams – placed 13th to 18th – will exit the competition.
The Women’s Champions League quarters and semis will then follow the regular two-legged knockout format.
Barcelona are the reigning Women’s Champions League holders
How will qualification work for WSL teams?
The teams finishing second and third will go through qualification rounds to reach the league phase, competing in the ‘league path’.
The WSL’s third-placed side will enter the process in the second round of qualification. That will be played as a one-off mini tournament, with the semi-final on August 27 – a month after the Euro 2025 final – with the final and third-place play-off on August 30.
The winner will then move on to the third round of qualification, when the WSL’s second-placed side will also enter the process. This will be a two-legged play-off against one opponent. The first leg will be played on September 11 and the second on September 18.
The five winning teams from the league path will secure a place in the league phase. There is also a ‘champions path’ for league winners from associations ranked seventh or lower by UEFA’s coefficient. Four teams from this qualification path will also join the league phase.
What about the Women’s Europa Cup?
From the 2025/26 season, UEFA will introduce a new European competition in women’s football – the Women’s Europa Cup.
Unlike the Women’s Champions League, the competition will be a straight two-legged knockout tournament played over six rounds – two qualification rounds before a round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
Thirteen teams based on their league finish in associations ranked eighth or lower will go straight into the first qualification round.
They will be joined by the 11 teams who finish third in the champions and league path second qualification rounds in the Women’s Champions League.
The winning teams from these ties will then move on to the Women’s Europa Cup second qualification round. They will be joined by the teams who finished as runners-up in the league and champions path second qualification rounds, and the losers of the third qualification round matches – a total of 20 teams.
It means that a WSL team could compete in the inaugural competition should they fail to reach the Women’s Champions League’s league phase.
The Women’s Europa Cup winners will qualify for the third qualification round of the champions path for the 2026/27 Women’s Champions League.
Women’s Champions League 2025/26 key dates
All draw dates are provisional and subject to change
Second qualifying round (one-venue mini-tournament)
Draw: June 16
Semi-finals: August 27
Final/third-place play-off: August 30
Third qualifying round
Draw: September 1
First leg: September 11
Second leg: September 18
League phase
Draw: September 19
Matchday 1: October 7/8
Matchday 2: October 15/16
Matchday 3: November 11/12
Matchday 4: November 19/20
Matchday 5: December 9/10
Matchday 6: December 17
Knockout phase play-offs
Draw: 19 December
First leg: February 11/12
Second leg: February 18/19
Quarter-finals
Draw: December 19
First leg: March 24/25
Second leg: April 1/2
Semi-finals
Draw: December 19
First leg: April 25/26
Second leg: May 2/3
Final at the Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway – To be confirmed
