A global women’s football powerhouse, Arsenal were going through a challenging period when Renee Slegers took the coaching reins in October 2024.
The Gunners had won just one of their opening four Women’s Super League matches of the season and were sixth in the table. That run of results prompted boss Jonas Eidevall’s resignation, with Slegers stepping up from her position as assistant coach to take on the No1 role on an interim basis.
What followed was nothing short of sensational. Slegers oversaw a stunning upturn in form, which culminated in Arsenal winning the UEFA Women’s Champions League after a final win over Barcelona.
That triumph secured the Gunners’ spot at the inaugural FIFA Women’s Champions Cup™, a global club competition where continental title winners battle it out to be crowned the world’s best.
The final stages of the event are being held in London from 28 January to 1 February, and Slegers is savouring the opportunity to lead Arsenal at the pioneering tournament.
“We’re proud we’re the champions of Europe and we look forward to facing teams from other continents,” said the Dutch coach, whose interim role was made permanent in January 2025. “You work every day and you work really hard to win trophies and to achieve things. This is one of the things we can achieve this season. We’re going to go all in and try to win the trophy.
“It’s very good that there are different competitions. You compete in different ways, in different formats. If you look at how quickly women’s football has grown and the legacy that’s already there, it’s fantastic. I’m really excited about the Champions Cup and I think that adds an extra layer.”
The semi-finals of the tournament will be held at Brentford Stadium on 28 January, with Arsenal set to face African champions ASFAR. Concacaf queens Gotham FC and South American giants Corinthians will clash in the other last-four tie. Arsenal Stadium will host the play-off for third place and the final on Sunday, 1 February.
Fuelling Slegers’ belief Arsenal can be the last team standing, she explained, is her squad’s expansive range of qualities on and off the field.
“Every dynamic of a group is different,” she said. “What I like about this team is there’s a really good mix of experienced players, players that have been playing for the club since they were young kids.
“Then there’s players that have come in that have always seen Arsenal from the outside, who have been fans of Arsenal. We all come from different countries and that makes a really nice blend of personalities and different backgrounds all coming together.
“What I also like about the group is their intelligence and their willingness to take on things and take accountability themselves. We have one thing in common. It’s that we love to play football and we love to represent Arsenal. It is special that all that comes together.”
Slegers’ success with Arsenal has been rewarded with a new three-year contract, which she signed earlier this month. The former Netherlands midfielder has her sights fixed on bettering her incredible maiden season as Gunners coach, with the Women’s Champions Cup one of the five competitions Arsenal remain in this term.
Arsenal – who are third in the Women’s Super League at the time of writing – are also in contention for the Women’s League Cup, Women’s FA Cup and the Women’s Champions League. With such a variety of challenges in store, Slegers underlined the importance of her team’s adaptability.
“What’s important is that we manage games well,” she said. “That we understand what we need to do when we have momentum, when we need momentum back and how we get there. And then just being really good in all phases of play, because football is so challenging at the moment.
“You can’t just have one identity and do one thing really well. I think you need to have different strengths and different threats. That’s what we’re constantly working on.”
