Manchester United kicks off its UEFA Champions League knockout campaign on Thursday, traveling to Atletico Madrid for the playoff round's first leg.
The two clubs met earlier this season in the league phase, with Manchester United claiming a 1-0 victory in October. Fridolina Rolfo scored the winner that day, with the WSL side holding firm despite Dominique Janssen's first-half red card forcing the Reds to finish the match with 10 players.
Atletico finished below United in the league phase standings, earning a home game for the first leg. The pair's second leg kicks off February 19th back in Manchester, with Bayern Munich awaiting the winners in the quarter-finals.
United heads into Thursday's match in strong form, riding a nine-game unbeaten streak across all competitions after last weekend's 2-0 win over Leicester City. Julia Zigiotti and Elisabeth Terland scored at the King Power Stadium, lifting the Reds to within eight points of league-leaders Manchester City with seven games remaining.
Marc Skinner's side will be without Ella Toone and Leah Galton due to injury, though Galton could return later this month. Midseason arrivals Hanna Lundkvist, Lea Schuller, and Ellen Wangerheim are all eligible to make their European debuts.
How to watch Manchester United at the Champions League knockouts
Manchester United kicks off Thursday's first-leg match at 3 PM ET, live on Paramount+.
The team will also host a watch-along via Man U's official YouTube channel.
The WSL is cashing in on the women's game, with two UK clubs surpassing €25 million in annual revenue for the first time, according to the Deloitte Football Money League report on the 2024/25 season that dropped this week.
Reigning UWCL champions Arsenal topped the list for the first time after taking in €25.6 million last season, followed closely by WSL title-holders Chelsea FC's €25.4 million.
Meanwhile, Perennial European contender FC Barcelona (€22 million) dropped to third after leading the group in 2023/24, outpacing WSL titans No. 4 Manchester City (€12.9 million) and No. 5 Manchester United (€12.8 million).
Due to a lack of revenue data, the yearly study did not include major women's leagues in the US, Sweden, or Australia, giving the rankings a European bent as the total sum crossed the €150 million mark for the first time — a 35% increase over the previous season's Top-15 Money League clubs.
Commercial income was the biggest revenue driver for many top clubs, with sponsorship deals and brand partnerships leading the charge.
Arsenal also benefitted from increased revenue on the men's side, allowing the women's team to up its investment while avoiding running at a loss.
How to watch the top Deloitte Football Money League clubs in action
Deloitte Football Money League leader Arsenal will take on No. 5 Man United while revenue runners-up Chelsea will face the WSL-leading Man City in the 2025/26 Women's League Cup semifinals on Wednesday.
The concurrent clashes will kick off at 2 PM ET, streaming live on YouTube.
The UWCL's first-ever league phase wraps on Wednesday, when all 18 2025/26 Champions League clubs will square off in a simultaneous afternoon kick-off finale.
Top finishers No. 1 Barcelona and No. 2 OL Lyonnes already secured automatic spots in the quarterfinals, with similarly unbeaten No. 3 Chelsea looking to claim their spot with a result on Wednesday.
The fourth guaranteed pathway will be tougher fight, however, as just three points separate No. 4 Juventus and No. 11 Atletico Madrid on the Champions League table.
While the top four teams will advance directly into the March quarterfinals, clubs finishing fifth through 12th will instead move on to the European competition's first-ever knockout playoffs in February to determine the final quartet of quarterfinalists.
No. 4 Bayern Munich, No. 5 Real Madrid, No. 6 Juventus, No. 7 Wolfsburg, No. 8 Arsenal, No. 9 Manchester United, and No. 10 Paris FC have all netted enough points to at least make the playoffs, leave three teams — Atlético de Madrid, No. 12 Oud-Heverlee Leuven, and No. 13 Vålerenga — battling the final two spots.
Amid Wednesday's high-stakes matchups, Wolfsburg will look to break into the upper ranks against Chelsea, Juventus will try to hold off Manchester United, and 2024/25 champs Arsenal will shoot for a result against Oud-Heverlee Leuven.
How to watch Wednesday's 2025/26 Champions League action
Wednesday's final UWCL league-phase matches will be cutthroat battles for tournament seeding.
The action kicks off at 3 PM ET, with live coverage on Paramount+.
The WSL appears to have a serious 2025/26 title race on its hands, after No. 1 Manchester City cemented their six-point lead on six-time reigning champs No. 2 Chelsea with Sunday's lopsided 6-1 win over No. 8 Aston Villa.
City striker Bunny Shaw scored four times in the victory, bringing her all-time club tally to 103 goals — and becoming the first woman to reach the century scoring mark in the team's modern era.
"Coming into this game, I knew that if I scored it would have been a really good milestone for me," she told BBC Radio.
Manchester City have been perfect since dropping their 2025/26 season opener — a 2-1 loss to six-time champions Chelsea — with the Citizens now carrying a 10-match WSL winning streak into 2026.
While Chelsea and No. 3 Arsenal have ample ground to make up on the WSL table, both managed to keep pace by snagging their own multi-goal wins over the weekend.
After No. 10 Everton snapped the Blues' 34-game WSL unbeaten streak last week, goals by France international Sandy Baltimore and USWNT star Alyssa Thompson shot Chelsea past No. 7 Brighton 3-0 on Sunday.
Arsenal is also back to their winning ways, taking down Everton 3-1 on Saturday to hold off No. 4 Manchester United as captain Leah Williamson returned from injury.
How to watch the WSL in 2026
Now on holiday break, the WSL will return at 7:30 AM ET on January 10th, when Arsenal will kick off 2026 play against Manchester United at Emirates Stadium, airing live on ESPN+.
With just one league-phase matchday left, a trio of unbeaten clubs — Barcelona, OL Lyonnes, and Chelsea — stand alone atop the 2025/26 Champions League table, leading the 18-team pack after all three squads notched midweek wins.
No. 1 Barcelona and No. 2 OL Lyonnes each have 13 points, with the Spanish contenders earning the edge over their French counterparts with a +15 goal differential.
Meanwhile, Chelsea sits in third with 11 points following a 6-0 drubbing of No. 17 AS Roma on Wednesday, though the Blues will need a result against No. 7 Wolfsburg next week to secure a spot in March's quarterfinals with a top-four finish.
Though the byes into the quarterfinals are still up for grabs, with just one matchday left before the knockouts, several of Europe's biggest teams have qualified for February's playoffs.
Wolfsburg alongside No. 10 Paris FC, No. 9 Manchester United, No. 8 Arsenal, No. 6 Juventus, No. 5 Real Madrid, and No. 4 Bayern Munich have already racked up enough points to advance out of the league phase.
Three clubs — No. 13 Vålerenga, No. 12 Oud-Heverlee Leuven, and No. 11 Atlético de Madrid — are fighting for the two remaining playoff tickets, with December 17th's simultaneous kickoff set to determine the winners.
How to watch the final 2025/26 Champions League league-phase matches
Determining both the first four UWCL quarterfinalists and the eight teams entering the playoffs, the final league-phase matchday will see all 18 clubs kicking off at 3 PM ET next Wednesday.
All 2025/26 Champions League matches will stream live on Paramount+.
Manchester United has a chance to bounce back from their first 2025/26 UEFA Women's Champions League defeat — a 5-2 rout at the hands of Wolfsburg last month — as the UWCL league phase continues with a series of exciting matchups this week.
"The Wolfsburg game, we gave away too many simple goals," Manchester United manager Marc Skinner said on Friday. "That's something we need to fix."
The Champions League debutantes have another difficult opponent waiting for them in their fifth league-phase match on Wednesday, when the Red Devils will contend with eight-time European champions OL Lyonnes, who have yet to suffer a loss in this season's competition.
That said, the return of USWNT goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce to the European competition will bolster United this week, with the 29-year-old officially available to play as she continues recovering from a fractured eye socket that kept her out of the final US training camp of 2025.
While Manchester United and their Wednesday opponent OL Lyonnes have all-but-guaranteed themselves at least a playoff spot in the 2025/26 UWCL knockout rounds, other top sides like the reigning six-time WSL champions Chelsea and current Champions League title-holders Arsenal chase them in the standings.
Both Chelsea and Arsenal face intriguing matchups during this week's UWCL competition, as the Gunners play Dutch club Twente on Tuesday before the Blues take on Italian side Roma on Wednesday.
How to watch this week's 2025/26 Champions League action
The fifth matchday of the 2025/26 UWCL league phase kicks off with Austria's St. Pölten against Italy's Juventus at 12:45 PM ET on Tuesday, with Arsenal taking the pitch against Twente at 3 PM ET.
Both Manchester United's clash with OL Lyonnes and Chelsea's bout with Roma will begin at 3 PM ET on Wednesday.
All 2025/26 Champions League matches will stream live on Paramount+.
The world No. 2 USWNT is stocking up to close out 2025, with head coach Emma Hayes dropping her 26-player roster on Wednesday morning ahead of a set of year-end friendlies against rising European star No. 12 Italy.
Hayes selected a blend of both Europe-based and NWSL talent, calling up formerly injured Chelsea standout Naomi Girma for the first time since July as well as Gotham FC standouts Jaedyn Shaw and Jaelin Howell — with Howell returning to the squad for the first time since 2022.
After an up-and-down October window, the US will look to finish the year strong against Le Azzure in Florida, taking on Italy in Orlando on November 28th before the pair square off again in Fort Lauderdale on December 1st.
Notably left out of the player pool are a pair of injured stars in Washington Spirit striker Trinity Rodman (MCL strain) and Manchester United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce (fractured eye socket).
On the other hand, Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz, Chicago Stars forward Jameese Joseph, and Washington Spirit defender Kate Wiesner all head to training camp uncapped.
The roster's seven Spirit and Gotham FC players will have the tightest turnaround, jetting off to camp immediately following Saturday's 2025 NWSL Championship clash.
"We've accomplished a lot of goals, expanded the player pool, and made strides in our game model, so this camp will be an extension of that, but it will also set the groundwork for 2026, which will be our World Cup qualifying year," Hayes said in a statement. "Games against top European teams are so valuable… I know our players with embrace that challenge."
The year-end 2025 USWNT roster
- Goalkeepers: Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Jordan Silkowitz (Bay FC)
- Defenders: Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Naomi Girma (Chelsea), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Izzy Rodriguez (Kansas City Current), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave), Kate Wiesner (Washington Spirit)
- Midfielders: Croix Bethune (Washington Spirit), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes), Jaelin Howell (Gotham), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes)
- Forwards: Jameese Joseph (Chicago Stars), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea)
How to watch the USWNT vs. Italy friendlies
Both the Friday, November 28th, and Monday, December 1st friendlies will kick off at 7 PM ET, with live coverage airing on TNT and HBO Max.
After a dramatic 3-0 win over crosstown rival Manchester United on Saturday, Manchester City is now leading the WSL, sitting three points clear atop the 2025/26 league table while notably extending their advantage over second-place powerhouse Chelsea FC.
The home side scored all three of their goals in the first half, with defender Rebecca Knaak putting City ahead in the 26th minute before attacker Khadija "Bunny" Shaw added to the lead in the 43rd minute.
Returning from injury with a vengeance, forward Lauren Hemp sealed the deal for the Citizens with the final goal in first-half stoppage time.
"It's so nice to be back," Hemp said postgame. "Today we showed the mentality that I said at the start we needed to show."
While reigning six-time WSL champions Chelsea have yet to lose a match this WSL season, a trio of 2025/26 draws has the Blues now trailing the current eight-win, one-loss record held by Manchester City.
As for United, the WSL third-place Red Devils were without star goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce in Saturday's loss, after the USWNT net-minder suffered a fractured eye socket in November 8th's 1-0 loss to Aston Villa.
"She should be fine, it's just trying to make sure she doesn't get another knock in that area," said United manager Marc Skinner, noting that Tullis-Joyce could return as soon as the club's 2025/26 Champions League match against VfL Wolfsburg on Wednesday.
Reigning UEFA Women's Champions League winners Arsenal suffered a setback on Wednesday, falling 3-2 to German side Bayern Munich after a second-half collapse led to three unanswered goals.
The Gunners are now 1-2 in league phase play, landing them in 11th place with three opening-round matches remaining.
"It's not good enough. We don't want to concede three goals in one half in the Champions League," Arsenal manager Renée Slegers said postgame. "It's everything. It's keeping the ball, making better decisions on the ball in their half to keep the ball there for longer, because it was very transitional."
A bright spot for Arsenal came via an opening goal from USWNT defender Emily Fox — one of a few US-centric Champions League boosts this week.
USWNT forward Catarina Macario notched a brace in Chelsea FC's 6-0 drubbing of St. Pölten on Tuesday, a match that also handed USWNT defender Naomi Girma her 2025/26 Champions League debut with the Blues.
Tuesday's clash also saw Chelsea captain Sam Kerr find the back of the net twice, as the Australia standout made her first start in 692 days.
Now halfway through league-phase play, only Barcelona, OL Lyonnes, and Manchester United remain perfect with a trio of wins, with Champions League matches resuming on November 19th.
Champions League newcomer Manchester United is on a roll, becoming the only 2025/26 league phase club to post two straight clean sheets while tallying six points through the first two UWCL matches.
USWNT goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce played Manchester United hero in the 1-0 Champions League shutout against Atlético Madrid on Thursday, notching five saves as both teams became shorthanded due to offsetting red cards.
"Phallon and her experiences in England have really taken her game up a notch," US national team boss Emma Hayes told reporters after dropping this month's USWNT roster earlier this week. "I really noticed she's playing like a player that has gone through the various levels."
Elsewhere on Thursday, reigning Champions League winners Arsenal shook off their 2025/26 opening loss to OL Lyonnes by claiming a 2-0 win over Portuguese side Benfica, with goals from Alessia Russo and Beth Mead sealing the deal for the Gunners.
Only five teams finished the European competition's opening pair of league-phase matches with all six points, with three-time title-winning titan Barcelona topping the UWCL table with a +10 goal differential.
Champions League play will continue next month, with the 18 contenders returning to the 2025/26 UWCL pitch for their third league-phase clashes on November 11th and 12th.