Women's Champions League Matchday 2 Preview

The UEFA Women's Champions League continues with league phase play for the second week in a row. After last week's nine opening fixtures, the second matchweek occurs on Wednesday and Thursday. Seven sides have three points to their name, and should they double their tally after this week, their chances of advancing go up considerably.

Here is a preview of what is coming up in this week's action.

Match of the Round

We kick off with the eye-opening game this week, which will see OL Lyonnes host Chelsea.

It is the fifth meeting between the sides in UEFA club competition history, with the French side leading 2-1-1. However, this is the first time they face off in group phase play. Overall, Lyonnes have a 13-3-5 record against English sides, but have lost a match against a WSL outfit in three of the last four completed campaigns. Their lone defeat to Chelsea is one of two occasions where they were held scoreless versus a team from England.

Playing in the UWCL for the seventh year running, the Blues are looking to finally get over the line in Europe. Three successive semifinals between 2023 and 2025 - where they fell to Barcelona on all three occasions - was followed by a quarterfinal exit last term. Chelsea have a strong record against French teams, winning nine of 13 all-time (9-1-3). That includes victories in each of their last three such fixtures, all versus Paris FC.

Trio Aim For Another Win

AS Roma will have the arduous task of facing defending champions Barcelona as part of Wednesday's early kickoffs. The Giallorosse lost all three previous head-to-heads by a combined score of 10-1. They suffered a 4-0 defeat in the league phase last fall, their joint-second heaviest home loss in Europe. The contrasts are stark here, as Barca prevailed in all five games against Italian opposition all-time. They are unbeaten in their last 12 matches at this portion of the UWCL, winning 11 times. With that said, the last two times they did not prevail in Europe, it came on the road.

After losing last week, BK Häcken will be up against an Italian opponent for the second week running as they host Juventus. It is a first-time meeting between the pair, with Häcken looking for their fourth win in the UWCL proper in the group phase era. Winners of the UEFA Women's Europa Cup in 2025/26, the Swedes four of five matches at home. Juve were also beaten last week, stretching their unbeaten run to four in the UWCL from the group phase on. However, they did defeat Hammarby during the qualifying rounds to make it this far.

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In France, Paris FC take on Arsenal in their second clash. This is a rematch from a qualifying round mini-tournament clash in 2023/24, which was won on penalties by Paris FC. That was the only time where the hosts avoided defeat in six games against English clubs. Semifinalists in 2012/13, Paris have been beaten in their last four in the competition. For Arsenal, they have a rather tame record against teams from France. This will be their 17th match, losing 10 of the first 16 (3-3-10). Their elimination to Paris FC marked the only time they have not played in the UWCL group stage/league phase.

Wednesday's other late kickoff pits together Benfica and Bayern Munich. The pair will meet for the fifth time - all coming in group phase play. Benfica have never won, falling in three of four matches. As Águias were winners to open their fifth appearance in the main rounds of the UWCL as they look to make the knockout phase for the second time ever. While Bayern have been a mixed bag on the road in Europe, they have scored in each of their last 10 away matches.

Debutants Clash

One of Thursday's early games will see the two new teams to the group phase, Austria Wien and Internazionale, do battle. The two were in the Women's Europa Cup last campaign, with Austria getting to the quarterfinals before their elimination. Inter, meanwhile, fell at the last 16. Both were involved in 1-0 matches last week, with the Nerazzurre ending up on the winning end. Austria fell to Chelsea, but were competitive, giving them reason to believe they can cause some problems in the league phase this fall.

It will be a massive opportunity for HB Køge and Servette, who meet in Denmark in what promises to be a pivotal clash. The Dane will have a realistic chance to finally end their losing streak at the group stage/league phase of the UWCL. All seven games they have played thus far have ended in defeat, having scored just twice. It is a similar story for Servette, who are yet to earn a result at this point of the tournament. In fact, they are still searching for their first goal, having conceded 31 times in seven games, including the eight on matchday 1.

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Aiming to get back on track, Paris Saint-Germain are up against OH Leuven. Les Parisiennes failed to make it past the league phase in 2025/26 as they drew their game against the Belgians in the process. Two-time finalists, PSG have not reached the knockout stage since 2023/24. For Leuven, they are 1-4-2 in the UWCL league phase, and have proven quite difficult to beat. They went 0-2-2 on the road last term, but have yet to lose in the competition this season through five games (3-2-0). Both of their games against teams from France ended level.

Another match between two teams on one point will occur in England as Manchester City welcome Real Madrid. The Cityzens will be looking for their first win at the fourth time of asking, having twice been knocked out by their Spanish-based opponents in qualifying. Remarkably, both of City's wins over Liga F teams were versus Barcelona, including a 2-0 home success in their last UWCL campaign. Meanwhile, Real have made the quarterfinals on three separate occasions, including last season, but have never gone further. They are 0-2-4 in group phase action against English opposition.