Two weeks today, on Friday 5 July, Cardiff City will find out their opponents for the first qualifying round of the 2024/25 UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Following their Genero Adran Premier title-winning campaign, the Bluebirds will compete in Europe’s most elite club competition for the second consecutive season.
The first qualifying round of the UEFA Women’s Champions League follows the format of a mini-tournament where clubs are drawn into groups of three or four based on seeding, which is decided by UEFA club coefficient. Cardiff City will be unseeded.
Clubs compete in a semi-final and then either the final or third-place play-off, with only the winner of the final progressing to a two-legged tie in round two. All games are played in the home country of one of the clubs in the group.
Last season, in their first appearance in the UEFA Women’s Champions League for a decade, Iain Darbyshire’s side lost to Gintra of Lithuania in the semi-final before defeat to Irish side Shelbourne in the third-place play-off.
This year, the semi-finals will be played on Wednesday 4 September, before the finals and third-place play-offs on Saturday 7 September.
“We’re really excited to discover our opponents for the upcoming Women’s Champions League campaign,” Darbyshire told the club’s website. “Last year was a fantastic experience for us that we learned a great deal from, but we’ll be looking to improve on last year’s performances.”
Watch the 2024/25 UEFA Women’s Champions League first qualifying round draw at 12pm on Friday 5 July on UEFA.com.
