91,648 spectators – that was a record and the high point of the season so far in European women’s football. So many fans came to the legendary Camp Nou to watch the Champions League semi-final between FC Barcelona Femení and VfL Wolfsburg. And that apparently inspired the Blaugrana so much that they almost booked the final ticket with a 5-1 win (second leg 0-2). FC Barcelona vs. Olympique Lyon is the name of the encounter in the Champions League final in Turin (May 21/7 p.m. CEST).
These two teams have already faced each other in the final: in 2019, Lyon won 4-1. The French have already won the premier class seven times and, in Ada Hegerberg, have a top scorer in their ranks: with 58 goals, she leads the all-time scorers list in the Women’s Champions League.
But Barça are the defending champions and the team of the moment in European women’s football. Before the 0: 2 in Wolfsburg, Alexia Putellas’ team had won 45 games in a row, Barça is in top form. World footballer Putellas has already scored ten goals in the current competition and thus leads the list of goalscorers together with Tabea Waßmuth from Wolfsburg.
Germany: Wolfsburg on the way to the double
The women-wolves have shaken off the disappointment of the semifinals in the premier class and are now concentrating on the possible double: In the DFB Cup, the German figurehead meets Turbine Potsdam on May 28 (4:45 p.m.), in the league Wolfsburg leads the table with 50 points and one game less than FC Bayern (49 points).
Third place is also highly coveted, because that also qualifies you for the Champions League. Turbine Potsdam has the best cards for this two games before the end of the season. Potsdam are three points ahead of Eintracht Frankfurt and even six points plus a better goal difference (+7) ahead of TSG Hoffenheim.
Bottom of the table Carl Zeiss Jena has already been relegated. And SC Sand also has little chance of staying up in the league: Five points behind the saving tenth place, on which SGS Essen is one game more, means a deficit that can hardly be made up. On the other hand, Werder Bremen and 1. FC Köln saved themselves.
Spain: Barcelona champions for weeks
The championship has already been decided since mid-March: After 24 of 30 match days, the FC Barcelona women’s team celebrated their third title in a row with a 5-0 win against Real Madrid. She scored more than twice as many goals as the competition, conceded only a handful of goals and therefore has an incredible goal difference of +138. Rayo Vallecano has been relegated, bottom of the table SC Eibar (20) has only theoretical chances six points behind in 14th place, but FC Villareal (26) and FC Valencia (26) still have to tremble.
France: Lyon with best championship chances
The fight for the title is still open here. With three games left, Champions League finalists Lyon lead Paris St. Germain by five points and have a better goal difference. Third-placed FC Paris no longer has a chance of winning the title. The relegation battle is exciting: even bottom-placed AS St. Etienne, six points behind tenth, still has a chance, as does penultimate AS Jeuness Soyaux (three points behind). In addition to the tenth FF Issy-les-Moulineaux, EA Guingamp and FCO Dijon, each four points above the line, also have to tremble. The penultimate Soyaux also plays directly against Guingamp and against St. Etienne.
England: Chelsea or Arsenal?
In Germany, when it comes to women’s football, the focus is always on England. There is still one matchday to go in the Women’s Super League and the championship could be decided as early as Wednesday evening: Should second-placed Arsenal not win, Chelsea with superstar Pernille Harder will be champions for the third time in a row.
Third – that’s already certain – will be Manchester United. Birmingham City are five points behind at the bottom of the table. But the bottom of the table still has a catch-up game and therefore theoretically still has a chance of six points and staying up in the league
EM in summer
One way or another, Europe’s top soccer players don’t have much time to rest: the European Championships, which were postponed by a year due to the corona pandemic, will take place in England from July 6th to 31st. The final will be played at Wembley Stadium in London, with a total of 16 teams taking part. It is not yet clear who will compete for the athletically qualified Russians. The team is currently excluded, a final decision should be made in mid-May.
The DFB-Elf recently suffered a 2-3 defeat against Serbia and thus missed out on qualifying for the 2023 World Cup, but with eight European titles they are among the favorites for the defending champions from the Netherlands.