Arsenal vs Chelsea Women's Champions League preview: Where to watch, possible starting line-ups

Arsenal and Chelsea meet in their UEFA Women's Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday 24 March at Arsenal Stadium.

What you need to know

For the first time in the history of a UEFA women's club competition, two teams from the same city face off. Arsenal are featuring in a joint-record 17th quarter-final as they continue the defence of their title, though while Chelsea are yet to lift the trophy and are only featuring in their seventh last-eight tie, they have come through all their previous six.

Chelsea were excused February's knockout phase play-offs after ending third in the league phase, finishing joint-top with Barcelona in both goals scored (20) and fewest conceded (3). Arsenal were fifth and required a play-off with OH Leuven but came through 7-1 on aggregate, Alessia Russo totalling three goals to move clear as overall top scorer on seven. In their two Women's Super League meetings this season, Arsenal – currently going well after a mixed autumn – drew 1-1 at home to Chelsea on 8 November and then won 2-0 away on 24 January.

Nevertheless, the Blues go into this tie having retained their English Women's League Cup crown on 15 March. In a period of defensive injuries, Kadeisha Buchanan started for the first time since 2024, though Nathalie Björn was forced off minutes into her own comeback. This Saturday, meanwhile, Arsenal's Steph Catley, Kyra Cooney-Cross and Caitlin Foord, and Chelsea's Sam Kerr and Ellie Carpenter, were all involved for Australia in their 1-0 AFC Asian Women's Cup final loss to Japan in Sydney.

Possible line-ups

Arsenal: Borbe; Fox, Wubben-Moy, Laia Codina, McCabe; Little, Caldentey, Smith; Mead, Russo, Kelly
Out: Reid (knee), Catley (fatigue), Cooney-Cross (fatigue), Foord (fatigue), Williamson (hamstring)
Doubtful: None

Chelsea: Hampton; Bronze, Buchanan, Buurman, Baltimore; Cuthbert, Walsh, Kaptein; Thompson, James, Rytting Kaneryd
Out: Bjorn (calf), Charles (ankle), Kerr (fatigue), Carpenter (fatigue), Bright (ankle)
Doubtful: Beever-Jones (ankle)

Form guide

Arsenal
Last six games: WWWWWW
Last match: Arsenal 5-0 West Ham United, 21/03, Women's Super League
Where they stand: 4th in Women's Super League, Women's FA Cup quarter-finals

Chelsea
Last six games: DWWWWW
Last match: London City Lionesses 1-1 Chelsea, 21/03, Women's Super League
Where they stand: 3rd in Women's Super League, Women's FA Cup quarter-finals, Women's League Cup winners

Views from the camps

Alessia Russo, Arsenal forward: "Chelsea are a team we are so familiar with. When you play Champions League football and get closer towards the final, you come up against really tough teams. To play Chelsea, an English team, probably something that we are not so used to in the quarter-finals, will be amazing. Two top teams coming up against each other for a place in the semi-final; it's unreal."

Lucy Bronze, Chelsea defender: "I think it’s interesting that we’re going to be two English teams going head-to-head. When I look at all the teams left in the competition, I think every single team will be thinking they’ve got a chance on the night of getting to the final, of lifting the trophy."

Where is the 2026 UEFA Women's Champions League final being played?

UEFA via Getty Images

Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, Norway, will host the 2026 UEFA Women's Champions League final on Saturday 23 May.

The final will be the first UEFA women's club decider to be played in Norway, although Ullevaal – opened in 1926 and renovated on several occasions since – staged the UEFA Women's EURO final in both 1987 and 1997. It is the regular home of the Norway women's and men's national teams. The 2016 men's UEFA Super Cup was also held in Norway, in Trondheim.