Cardiff City take on Athlone Town of the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Women’s Champions League first qualifying round semi-final on Wednesday 30 July (KO 19:30).
Athlone, based around 100km west of Dublin, are the hosts for the whole of Group 5, with Wednesday’s winner meeting Croatian champions ZNK Agram in the final on Saturday for a place in the second qualifying round.
This is Cardiff’s third consecutive season in the UEFA Women’s Champions League but the Bluebirds are still in search of their first win in the competition. It is six years since any Genero Adran Premier side earned a victory in Europe.
Last year’s first qualifying round saw City lose 7-0 to Dutch side FC Twente in the semi-final before a 2-0 defeat to FK Ljuboten of North Macedonia in the third-place match.
After winning the Genero Adran Premier and Bute Energy Welsh Cup in 2024/25, Iain Darbyshire has kept the majority of his squad intact ahead of their European campaign.
The Bluebirds will have been disappointed to lose Eliza Collie and Molly Kehoe to Gwalia United and West Bromwich Albion respectively, but Helen Evans from The New Saints and Cymru WU19 international Maddison Perrott are strong replacements. Danielle Green has retired, calling time on her 13-year City career.
Pre-season games have come thick and fast for Cardiff, as they aim to get up to speed with Athlone who are mid-season. The Bluebirds have tested themselves against sides in the English pyramid – Cheltenham Town, Exeter City, Bristol Rovers and Plymouth Argyle – before victory over Cardiff Met on Sunday.
“We need to win a game in the Champions League,” Iain Darbyshire said, looking ahead to the tie. “It is the next step for us. We’re not going there to just make the numbers up; we need to do this as a group and overcome the hurdles that we’ve had over previous years.
“The game changes so quickly, especially the women’s game. The first couple of years in the Champions League were a steep learning curve for us.
“We feel now we’re in a much better place. The group has been together for over a year, and we’re feeling we can have a really positive week when we go to Ireland.”
Wednesday’s opponents Athlone Town were only founded five years ago and are making their UEFA Women’s Champions League debut after winning the League of Ireland Women’s Premier Division for the first time in 2024.
Colin Fortune’s side are chasing a second consecutive title as they currently sit top of the table midway through the 2025 campaign, unbeaten in 13 league matches so far – winning 10 of those.
There is an Irish core to the squad which also includes multiple American players and Cypriot international goalkeeper Maria Matthaiou. Jamaican midfielder Izzy Groves and Nicaraguan defender Erica Cunningham have both also been capped for their nations and hold English second tier experience with London City Lionesses and Blackburn Rovers respectively.
23-year-old Kelly Brady, a former Republic of Ireland WU19 international, is likely to be the key threat in attack having scored 14 goals in 17 appearances in all competitions so far in 2025.
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