A yardstick for judging every fixture list
The draw for the Women’s Champions League league phase was made last Friday. Fifty-four matches, six rounds, 18 teams. The opening round is less than two weeks away.
Every club now knows its six opponents. No side has the exact same run. So Opta has crunched a difficulty index using its Power Rankings, which rate more than 2,500 women’s teams around the world. The idea is simple enough: add up the ratings of the six opponents and take the average. The higher the number, the tougher the road.
This is no throwaway exercise. Last season, Barcelona had the easiest-looking schedule in the field, at 84.5. They finished top, then lifted their fourth trophy after brushing aside Real Madrid (6-2 on aggregate), Bayern Munich (5-3) and OL Lyonnes in the final (4-0).
Try it for $0.99.
Chelsea and Barcelona get the good end of the draw
Chelsea have the best draw this time, level with Juventus. Their six opponents average 83.0. Third in Opta’s global rankings, the London side travel to OL Lyonnes, host Paris Saint-Germain and finish away to OH Leuven, the 107th-ranked team in the world. The rule stopping two clubs from the same federation meeting in the league phase saves them from Arsenal.
Barcelona have done well too. Two trips stand out, away to Munich and home against Arsenal. The rest looks manageable. Paris FC, HB Koge and Servette are among the five lowest-ranked teams in the competition. Barca have never lost to any of the three, and they have never conceded against them in European competition.
One caveat, though. Barcelona have lost Salma Paralluelo, who moved to OL Lyonnes, and Ona Batlle, who signed for Arsenal. Alexia Putellas has joined London City Lionesses along with Mapi Leon. The Spain midfielder finished as the most decisive player in last season’s Women’s Champions League, with 14 goal contributions: eight goals and six assists.
Arsenal and Bayern pay the price
Arsenal have the toughest schedule of the English clubs, at 86.4. Two straight rounds jump out: away to Barcelona, then home to OL Lyonnes. The Gunners have beaten Lyon only once outside the knockout rounds, back in October 2022, and have lost both meetings with Barcelona. Their start is kinder, with HB Koge at home and Paris FC away.
OL Lyonnes follow at 86.7, with Chelsea and BK Hacken at home and Arsenal away. Bayern bring up the rear among the leading sides at 87.2: Manchester City in the opener, Real Madrid and Barcelona at home, PSG away. Manchester City, back after a season out, have a slightly easier path at 85.3, despite starting in Munich.
Discover the rest of the football news on our mathodds website and app!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply