OSLO, Norway (AP) — Barcelona and OL Lyon will meet in the Women’s Champions League final on Saturday, aiming to win the season’s fourth trophy.
The two clubs, who have dominated women’s football in Europe for more than 15 years, will meet for the fourth time in the last eight finals.
Lyon won the match 2-1, making them a record eight European champions in the 25-year history of the competition, including five in a row until 2020.
Barcelona have reached the final for the seventh time in eight years and sixth year in a row, and are favorites to win their fourth title.
That era began with a humiliating 4-1 defeat to Lyon in the 2019 final in Budapest.
“They were much better than us, I can say that humbly,” said Barcelona’s two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putelas.
Lyon also won the title race in 2022, and only achieved that in 2024. Barcelona finally wins A match against your biggest rival.
Lyon captain Wendy Renard will be playing in the 12th final of her impressive career, having scored the goal for the French giants to win their first title in 2011.
The team is coached by a former Barcelona colleague. Jonathan Giraldes won the Women’s Champions League twice with Barcelona when Pere Romeu was one of his assistants and is currently coaching Lyon.
“It’s an honor to play against Barcelona. I’m grateful for the experience I gained there and I wish them all the best,” Giraldes said.
Is Oslo too small?
UEFA’s choice of Oslo to host the final has drawn criticism from Barcelona.
star player Aitana Bommati She suggested the 28,000-seat Ullevaar Stadium would be a “step backwards” for women’s football. It’s too small a stadium for a city with so few direct flights.
Norway was defended as The “homeland” of women’s soccer Nadine Kessler, Director of Women’s Football at the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), gave a speech. She appeared in three Champions League finals, all with fewer than 20,000 spectators.
Ullevaar was sold out on Saturday, while Sporting Lisbon’s stadium was only three-quarters full compared to a year ago when nearly 39,000 people watched. Arsenal beat Barcelona 1-0.
Norway’s established stars, Barcelona’s Caroline Graham-Hansen and Lyon’s Ada Hegerberg, stood at the national stadium on Friday.
Graham Hansen, who grew up near Oslo, said, “The venue was chosen several years ago. It was not a given that the stadium would be filled to capacity.”
Hegerberg said the match was a “once in a lifetime” opportunity for Norwegian football and an inspiration to young girls.
The 2027 final will be held at the Polish National Stadium in Warsaw, which can accommodate 56,000 people for the largest match.
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