Arsenal WFC will be seeking home comforts during the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup 2026™, with the final stages of the highly-anticipated global tournament taking place in London.
The semi-finals, third-place match and final of the inaugural edition of the international women’s club competition will be held in the UK capital from 28 January to 1 February 2026.
As UEFA Champions League victors, Arsenal will face CAF champions ASFAR, who beat AFC champions Wuhan Chegu Jiangda WFC in the second round of the final phase.
Should they win that contest, the Londoners will meet either Gotham FC or Corinthians — the respective North and South American participants — in the final.
With excitement already building for the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup, the tournament has the overwhelming backing of USA coach Emma Hayes.
“Being a [former] club coach, I remember the importance of international competition even at the club level so I think it adds another string to the players’ bow to be able to play something other than just a team within a smaller region,” Hayes told FIFA.
“We know there is growth in the calendar but we have to embrace that. I’ve said before, we need to create squad sizes and the quality and depth within the squads to be able to cope with the demands of the game. If you compare the number of games in the women’s game and the men’s game, there is a considerable drop-off.
“And I believe in diversity of opponents so I think it’s a great competition and having a lot of [USA] players in that, it will be good to see how they perform at that stage.”
Arsenal defender Emily Fox, meanwhile, is particularly excited for the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup coming to London, where she plays her club football.
During USA’s recent double-header in Florida, the 27-year-old also spoke to FIFA about opportunity to potentially face familiar faces at Gotham FC as well as unfamiliar teams and players from around the world.
Emily Fox: [It’s] exciting. For us, we see it as another opportunity to win some hardware and play against the best teams in the world. I think it’s progress for the women’s game to have a tournament like this and make it possible within different schedules and all that.
Yes, it’s banter and teasing like, ‘We may play you in the final, what’s going to happen?’ Things like that…
For sure, pleased with it, especially in the sense that January is a crazy time for us. Crazy for most WSL teams, especially with the Champions League and you also have the FA Cup and League Cup starting around that time too. So for us it’s great to have that home-field advantage.
I think it’s pretty similar to here with the national team as you play different styles, different strengths and weaknesses and that broadens your landscape in terms of what you have to deal with and what you are exposed to. For us, it’s how can we get better and how can we learn from it.
Having this inaugural tournament increases the scope and expanse of the women’s game and also the fanbase.
