The UEFA Women’s Champions League draw took place on Friday, putting holders Barcelona in a group with Manchester City, while Women’s Super League champions Chelsea will face Real Madrid in Group B.
Arsenal will face Bayern Munich, Juventus and Valerenga. Arsenal knocked the German champions out of the competition in the quarterfinals in 2022-23.
Barcelona and City’s group was rounded out with St. Pölten and Hammarby IF, while Chelsea and Madrid will take on FC Twente and debutants Celtic.
The final group is made of up Lyon, Wolfsburg, Roma and Galatasaray.
Manchester City secured their passage from round two with an emphatic 8-0 aggregate win against Paris FC.
Arsenal headed into their second leg with a 1-0 deficit after BK Häcken secured an early lead in Gothenburg. The Gunners turned the tie around with a 4-0 (4-1 on agg.) win at Meadow Park to book their place in the group stage.
Chelsea earned an automatic place in the group stage following their Women’s Super League (WSL) win last term. The Champions League was the one title that eluded former manager Emma Hayes during her 12-year tenure at the club. Now under the helm of former Lyon manager Sonia Bompastor, who has won the competition as a player and a head coach, the Blues will be optimistic that this could be the year they lift the silverware.
Chelsea have made it to the semifinals for the past two campaigns, both times falling short against the reigning champions Barcelona.
Arsenal failed to make it past the qualifiers last season, while Manchester City haven’t been in the tournament since 2020-21.
The group stage will be spread across from 8-9 October until 17-18 December, with two matches taking place in each month.
Draw in full:
Group A: Lyon, Wolfsburg, Roma, Galatasaray
Group B: Chelsea, Real Madrid, FC Twente, Celtic
Group C: Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Juventus, Valerenga
Group D: Barcelona, Manchester City St. Pölten, Hammarby
