From the beginning of the 2025/26 season, the UEFA Women’s Champions League will follow a new format that is similar to the new-look men’s competition which gets underway next season.

The women’s competition was first played in 2001 under the name UEFA Women’s Cup, but was renamed to the Champions League for the 2009/10 season. French side Lyon are the most successful team in the competition with eight titles to their name so far.

In December 2023, the UEFA Executive Committee approved the new format, which includes the introduction of a second European women’s club competition. This means new teams will be able to enter and some who are knocked out of the Champions League will have a second attempt at silverware.

The primary competition will be a single league featuring 18 teams, which also allows more teams to compete. This means teams will no longer play three opponents twice as part of a group stage, but will instead face six different teams in a league stage, playing half of those away from home and the other half at home.

Teams will be ranked in three seeding pots based on their club-coefficient ranking and will play two opponents from each pot. 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 automatically qualify for the quarter-finals, while those in fifth to 12th will contest two-legged knockout games to book their place in the last eight.

Those who finish 13th or below are eliminated with no chance of progressing to the latter stages. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and final will follow the traditional format of the competition.

READ THE LATEST WOMEN’S FOOTBALL NEWS, OPINION & ANALYSIS