Women's Champions League round 1 ties: Arsenal-Rangers, Ajax, Frankfurt, Benfica

The UEFA Women's Champions League round 1 draw has been made in Nyon beginning the 2024/25 season, with the likes of Arsenal (who face Rangers), Ajax, Frankfurt, Benfica, Paris FC and Atlético involved.

Round 1 is one of two rounds before the 16-team group stage, which starts in October. It is split into two paths: the champions path and the league path. In both paths, round 1 will consist of two stages, each of one-off knockout matches played in single-venue mini-tournaments with semi-finals on 4 September and finals/third-place play-offs on 7 September. The kick-off times will be confirmed in due course.

The winners of each final (11 in champions path, four in league path) will progress to round 2, which will decide the 12 teams joining holders Barcelona, Lyon, Bayern and Chelsea in the group stage.

Round 1 ties

League path:

• Sixteen teams enter at this stage: the runners-up from the associations ranked seventh to 16th and the third-placed teams from the associations ranked first to sixth.
• They compete in four knockout mini-tournaments of four clubs each.
• The winners of the four finals will progress to round 2, into which six teams have direct entry (Paris Saint-Germain, Wolfsburg, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Juventus and Häcken). Five group stage places will be on offer in round 2.

Group 1 (hosts: Brøndby)

Semi-finals
Brøndby vs Fiorentina
Ajax vs Kolos Kovalivka

Group 2 (hosts: Linköping)

Semi-finals
Sparta Praha vs Linköping
Paris FC vs First Vienna

Group 3 (hosts: Arsenal)

Semi-finals
Arsenal vs Rangers
Atlético vs Rosenborg

Group 4 (hosts: Breidablik)

Semi-finals
FC Minsk vs Breidablik
Eintracht Frankfurt vs Sporting CP

Enter in round 2

Paris Saint-Germain
Wolfsburg
Real Madrid
Manchester City
Juventus
Häcken

Champions path:

• A total of 43 teams are entering at this stage: the champions of the associations ranked eighth and below.
• They compete 11 single-venue knockout mini-tournaments: ten with four teams and one with three teams.
• The winners of the 11 finals will progress to round 2, into which three teams have direct entry (Slavia Praha, Roma and Hammarby). Seven group stage places will be on offer in round 2.

UEFA

Group 1 (hosts: SFK 2000 Sarajevo)

Semi-finals
SFK 2000 Sarajevo vs KÍ Klaksvík
Benfica vs Nordsjælland

Group 2 (hosts: Lanchkhuti)

Semi-finals
Vllaznia vs Lanchkhuti
St. Pölten vs Neftçi

Group 3 (hosts: Gintra)

Semi-finals
KuPS Kuopio vs Celtic
Gintra vs Agarista Anenii Noi

Group 4 (hosts: Birkirkara)

Semi-finals
Breznica vs Birkirkara
Anderlecht vs Crvena zvezda

Group 5 (hosts: Twente)

Semi-finals
Twente vs Cardiff City
Valur vs Ljuboten

Group 6 (hosts: Apollon LFC)

Semi-finals
Apollon LFC vs Pyunik
Mura vs Glentoran

Group 7 (hosts: Pogoń Szczecin)

Semi-finals
PAOK vs Qiryat Gat
Servette FCCF vs Pogoń Szczecin

Group 8 (hosts: Racing FC Union)

Semi-finals
BIIK-Shymkent vs NSA Sofia
Racing FC Union vs Galatasaray

Group 9 (hosts: Osijek)

Semi-finals
Osijek vs Spartak Myjava
Dinamo-BSUPC vs Peamount United

Group 10 (hosts: Ferencváros)

Semi-finals
Ferencváros vs Flora
Vorskla Poltava vs RFS

Group 11 (hosts: Farul Constanta)

Semi-final
Mitrovica vs Farul Constanta

Final
Vålerenga vs Mitrovica / Farul Constanta

Enter in round 2:

Slavia Praha
AS Roma
Hammarby

Club facts

• Opponents KÍ Klaksvík and Sarajevo are both entering for a joint-record 22nd season (including the pre-2009 UEFA Women's Cup), and are meeting for the first time. Sarajevo extend their outright record to 22 straight appearances. Brøndby, Gintra and Sparta Praha make their 21st entries.

• Eintracht Frankfurt won four titles under their previous guise of 1. FFC Frankfurt.

• Arsenal, who lost to Paris FC in round 1 last year, the first time in 16 entries that they had not reached the quarter-finals, were winners in 2006/07.

• Ajax and Benfica both went from round 1 to the quarter-finals last season.

• Atlético, Breidablik, Linköping, Sparta and Valur are also past quarter-finalists while Brøndby, Paris FC (in their previous guise of Juvisy) and Rosenborg (when known as Trondheims-Ørn) have reached the semis.

• Linköping knocked out Sparta in the old round of 16 in 2010/11 and 2017/17.

• Further clubs in the draw who were in the group stage last season, along with Ajax and Benfica, are Frankfurt, Paris FC and St. Pölten. Meanwhile, Arsenal, Breidablik, Servette and Vllaznia have previously reached the post-2021/22 group stage.

• Birkirkara beat Breznica 1-0 in last season's round 1 semi-finals.

• BIIK defeated NSA 4-0 in the 2012/13 qualifying round and 5-0 in the 2005/06 first qualifying round.

• Vålerenga beat potential Group 11 final opponents Mitrovica 5-0 in the round 1 semis last season.

• Debutants: Crvena zvezda, Farul Constanta, First Vienna, Galatasaray, Kolos Kovalivka, Neftçi, Nordsjælland, Pogoń Szczecin, Pyunik.

• Neftçi are the first entrants from Azerbaijan since 2007/08.

• RFS previously entered as SFK Rīga.

Season calendar

Round 1 (one-venue mini-tournaments)
Semi-finals: 4 September
Finals/third-place play-offs: 7 September

Round 2 draw
9 September, Nyon

Round 2
First leg: 18/19 September
Second leg: 25/26 September

Group stage draw
27 September, Nyon

Group stage
Matchday 1: 8/9 October
Matchday 2: 16/17 October
Matchday 3: 12/13 November
Matchday 4: 20/21 November
Matchday 5: 11/12 December
Matchday 6: 17/18 December

Quarter-final & semi-final draw
7 February, Nyon

Quarter-finals
First leg: 18/19 March
Second leg: 26/27 March

Semi-finals
First leg: 19/20 April
Second leg: 26/27 April

Final (Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon)
23, 24 or 25 May tbc