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A look ahead to the new season
Potential opponents, format and fixtures: All you need to know on the 2026/27 UEFA Women’s Champions League campaign
More matches, more teams, more excitement: UEFA launched its new, expanded Women’s Champions League format last season. In the new season in Europe’s premier women’s club competition, FC Bayern Women will once again face six different opponents in the league phase. fcbayern.com has the lowdown on exactly how the league phase will work, which opponents Bayern could face and which dates will be key.
The draw for the league phase of the Champions League will take place on Friday (4 September) at 12:00 CEST in Nyon.
How will the 2026/27 UEFA Women’s Champions League work?
In the 2025/26 season, the Women’s Champions League was expanded for the first time by two teams to 18 participants, and the previous group stage was consequently replaced by a single league phase. For the draw, all 18 participating teams will first be divided into three pots based on their UEFA club coefficient. Each team will then be drawn against two opponents from each pot and play six games - three at home and three away. On the final matchday, all nine matches will take place simultaneously, which will mean more excitement and ensure every match remains crucial right up until the final whistle.
Whilst the top four teams in the league table will qualify directly for the quarter-finals, those in fifth to eighth place will face the teams ranked ninth to 12th in an additional play-off round. The teams that finish higher in the league phase will also have home advantage in the second leg. The play-off winners will complete the quarter-final line-up, and will be drawn against one of the directly qualified teams, with the latter awarded home advantage in the second leg. The semi-final fixtures will also be drawn at the same time. The final will take place at the end of May at the Stadion Narodowy in Warsaw.
Following the league phase and a round of play-offs, the two finalists will emerge from the familiar tournament format | © UEFA
The potential opponents
Pot 1
1. Barcelona (Spain)
2. Lyonnes (France)
3. Chelsea Women (England)
4. Bayern Munich (Germany)
5. Arsenal Women (England)
6. Paris Saint-Germain (France)
Pot 2
1. Real Madrid (Spain)
2. Juventus (Italy)
3. BK Häcken (Sweden)
4. Roma (Italy)
5. Benfica (Portugal)
6. Paris FC (France)
Pot 3
1. Manchester City (England)
2. OH Leuven (Belgium)
3. HB Køge (Denmark)
4. Austria Vienna (Austria)
5. Inter Milan (Italy)
6. Servette (Switzerland)
The 2026/27 UEFA Women’s Champions League fixture list
Last season, FC Bayern Women reached the semi-finals of Europe's premier women's club competition, but were defeated by Barcelona, who went on to win the UWCL. | © FC Bayern
- Matchday 1: 22–23 September 2026
- Matchday 2: 30 September–1 October 2026
- Matchday 3: 28–29 October 2026
- Matchday 4: 10–11 November 2026
- Matchday 5: 18–19 November 2026
- Matchday 6: 16 December 2026
- Play-offs: 3–4 & 10–11 February 2027
- Quarter-finals: 23–24 March & 30 March–1 April 2027
- Semi-finals: 1–2 & 8–9 May 2027
- Final: 28, 29 or 30 May 2027 in Warsaw
Lena Oberdorf and Giulia Gwinn made their comebacks against Mainz:
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