UWCL: Arsenal and Wolfsburg take lead in the first leg of the Women’s Champions League

Arsenal underlined its record for back-to-back Women’s Champions League titles by beating English rivals Chelsea 3-1 in the first leg of the quarter-finals on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Wolfsburg took a 1-0 lead over record eight-time champions Lyonnes in a meeting between two of the competition’s most legendary names.

Stina Blackstenius – with her first Champions League goal since the winner in the final against Barcelona last season – and Chloe Kelly gave Arsenal a 2-0 half-time lead at the Emirates Stadium.

Lauren James curled a brilliant long-range shot into the top corner to reduce the deficit for Chelsea, but Arsenal regained their two-goal cushion when Alessia Russo drove home from the edge of the penalty area.

Chelsea finished higher in the league stage – third place, compared to Arsenal in fifth – but have work to do in next week’s second leg through London if they are to reach the semi-finals for the fourth season in a row.

Lineth Beerensteyn scored the only goal for Wolfsburg with a deflected shot in the 14th minute against Lyon in the 12th Champions League meeting between the teams, tying it for the most played match in the competition’s history.

Four of those matches have been in the finals, which underlines their dominance.

Kadidiatou Diani hit the post late in the match for Lyon, whose most recent of their eight titles came in 2022.

The other two first legs in the quarter-finals are on Wednesday, when Real Madrid host Barcelona in a major Spanish rivalry and Manchester United make their debut against Bayern Munich at this stage.

Published on March 25, 2026