BILBAO, Spain (AP) — Barcelona ended its losing streak against Lyon to clinch its third Women’s Champions League title in four years on Saturday.
World player of the year Aitana Bonmatí scored in the second half and Alexia Putellas added the second deep into stoppage time for Barcelona to win 2-0 after losing the two previous finals it played against the French side.
The Catalan club had never won in four previous matches against Lyon, which remains the most successful club in the women’s game with eight European trophies.
In front of a record crowd of 50,827 for the final, Barcelona became the third club with three Women’s Champions League titles, behind the eight of Lyon and the four of Eintracht Frankfurt.
The victory adds to Barcelona’s recent dominance in the women’s game. It was playing in its fourth consecutive Women’s Champions League final, having won it last year and in 2021.
The women’s triumph comes amid continued turmoil in the men’s team, which hasn’t succeeded in Europe recently and saw player great Xavi Hernández leave as the coach on Saturday.
Lyon was playing in its 11th final in 15 seasons, and was seeking its first title since it beat Barcelona in the final in 2022. The French club also defeated Barcelona in the 2019 final.
The new European title for Barcelona comes on the heels of Spain’s triumphs last year in the Women’s World Cup and the inaugural Women’s Nations League.
It felt like a home match for Barcelona as its fans occupied most of the seats at San Mames Stadium in Basque Country.
It was an even match from the start, with neither team creating many significant scoring opportunities. Lyon hit the woodwork early on, and its goalkeeper Christiane Endler made easy saves at the other end.
Lyon was able to keep Bonmatí in check during most of the match, but she broke through with the opening goal with a nice run into the area before firing a left-footed shot past Endler in the 63rd minute. The ball deflected off the leg of Lyon defender Vanessa Gilles.
Former world player of the year Putellas came off the bench in the second half and celebrated her stoppage-time goal by taking off her jersey and running toward the fans.
Bonmatí was named the player of the match.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
