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05/23 03:49 CDT Barcelona and OL Lyonnes chase season sweep of trophies in
Women's Champions League final
Barcelona and OL Lyonnes chase season sweep of trophies in Women's Champions
League final
By GRAHAM DUNBAR
AP Sports Writer
OSLO, Norway (AP) --- Barcelona and OL Lyonnes are both chasing a season sweep
of four major trophies when they meet in the Women's Champions League final
Saturday.
The two dominant clubs in European women's soccer over 15 years face each other
for the fourth time in the past eight finals.
It is 2-1 in that head-to-head for Lyon which has a record eight European
titles, including five straight through 2020, in the competition's 25-year
history.
Barcelona is in its seventh final in eight years, its sixth in a row, and is
widely favored to win a fourth title.
That era started with a humbling 4-1 loss to Lyon in the 2019 final in Budapest.
"They were much, much better than us. I am humble enough to say that,"
Barcelona's two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alxia Putellas recalled.
Lyon also won their title clash in 2022 and only in 2024 did Barcelona finally
triumph against its biggest rival.
Lyon captain Wendie Renard is set to play in her 12th final of a remarkable
career, since scoring in the French giant's first title win in 2011.
The teams are coached by former colleagues at Barcelona. Jonatan Girldez now
coaches Lyon after winning two Women's Champions League titles at Barcelona
when Pere Romeu was one of his assistants.
"I feel privileged to face Barcelona as I'm grateful for the experience I had
there and I wish them the best," Girldez said.
Oslo too small? UEFA's choice of Oslo to host the final has drawn some criticism from Barcelona. Star player Aitana Bonmat suggested the 28,000-seat Ullevaal Stadium was "a step back" for women's soccer: a stadium too small in a city with too few direct flights. Norway was defended as "the motherland" of women's soccer in Europe by UEFA's director of women's football, Nadine Kessler. She played in three Champions League finals that each drew crowds of fewer than 20,000. The Ullevaal is sold out Saturday, while one year ago Sporting Lisbon's stadium was just three-quarters full with nearly 39,000 to watch Arsenal beat Barcelona 1-0. Norway's established stars --- Barcelona's Caroline Graham Hansen and Lyon's Ada Hegerberg --- stood up for their national stadium Friday. "The venue was decided a couple of years ago," said Graham Hansen, who grew up in this neighborhood of Oslo, "and you didn't take it for granted you would sell out the stadium." The game is "a once in a lifetime" opportunity for Norwegian soccer and to inspire young girls, Hegerberg said. The 2027 final is in Warsaw at Poland's national stadium, which can hold 56,000 for the biggest games. ___ AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Oslo too small? UEFA's choice of Oslo to host the final has drawn some criticism from Barcelona. Star player Aitana Bonmat suggested the 28,000-seat Ullevaal Stadium was "a step back" for women's soccer: a stadium too small in a city with too few direct flights. Norway was defended as "the motherland" of women's soccer in Europe by UEFA's director of women's football, Nadine Kessler. She played in three Champions League finals that each drew crowds of fewer than 20,000. The Ullevaal is sold out Saturday, while one year ago Sporting Lisbon's stadium was just three-quarters full with nearly 39,000 to watch Arsenal beat Barcelona 1-0. Norway's established stars --- Barcelona's Caroline Graham Hansen and Lyon's Ada Hegerberg --- stood up for their national stadium Friday. "The venue was decided a couple of years ago," said Graham Hansen, who grew up in this neighborhood of Oslo, "and you didn't take it for granted you would sell out the stadium." The game is "a once in a lifetime" opportunity for Norwegian soccer and to inspire young girls, Hegerberg said. The 2027 final is in Warsaw at Poland's national stadium, which can hold 56,000 for the biggest games. ___ AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
