Each of Juventus and AS Roma took significant steps in their attempts to qualify for the Women’s Champions League group stage on Sunday evening, winning the finals of their respective first-round qualification tournaments.
Qualification for the Women’s Champions League is a long and rather complicated path, but it is – in short – split into two rounds. The first of those was played this past week and sees mini-tournaments consisting of semi-finals and finals. Both AS Roma and Juventus, as Serie A Femminile’s two representatives, won each of their games to win their respective tournaments and advance.
Juventus Women beat Kiryat Gat in Champions League qualifiers
Having beaten Racing-Union in their semi-final during the week, Joe Montemurro’s Juventus Women came up against Israeli side Kiryat Gat in the final of their mini-tournament.
Enjoying the benefit of home advantage, the Bianconere led early through Sofia Cantore, who marked her Women’s Champions League debut in style having just returned to Turin over the summer after a series of loans elsewhere in Italy, most recently impressing at Sassuolo in 2021/22. Cantore opened the scoring with a delightful lob.
Annahita Zamanian made it two but the visitors pulled one back immediately. Arianna Caruso, though, scored her second goal in as many games this season to seal the 3-1 win late on.
AS Roma Women beat Paris FC on penalties
Things were a little tenser in Glasgow, where AS Roma took on French side Paris FC. Nothing could separate the two capital-city sides after 90 and then 120 minutes, so it went to a penalty shootout to settle the final after two goalless hours.
Roma goalkeeper Camelia Ceasar saved the second of Paris‘ spot kicks, whereas the Giallorosse converted each of their five with Manuela Giugliano, Andressa Alves, Annamaria Serturini, Elena Linari and Emilie Haavi all scoring.
How does Women’s Champions League qualification work?
AS Roma and Juventus now join 22 other teams in Round 2 – split between the Champions Path (14 teams, including Juventus) and the League Path (10 teams, including Roma).
They will be drawn against just one team in a playoff-style tie, the winner of which will qualify for the Women’s Champions League group stage.
The first legs of the Round 2 games will be played on September 20/21 and the second legs on September 28/29.
From Round 2, a place in the Women’s Champions League group stage will be on offer. The seven winning Round 2 Champions Path teams and the five Round 2 League Path teams will qualify for the group stage proper.
Juventus are seeded in the Champions Path, and will face one of SFK 2000 Sarajevo, Vorskia-Kharkiv, HB Koge, Valur, Brann, Rangers, or Kuopion Palloseura (KuPS).
AS Roma are unseeded and likely to face a tough task. The Giallorosse will have to overcome one of Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Sparta Prague, or Real Madrid.
Lyon, Barcelona, Wolfsburg and Chelsea have already booked their respective places in the group stage.
