Arsenal vs OL Lyonnes Women's Champions League preview: Where to watch, full lowdown

Arsenal and OL Lyonnes meet in their UEFA Women's Champions League semi-final first leg on Sunday 26 April at Arsenal Stadium.

What do you need to know?

Few semi-finals of this competition have been as dramatic as when these teams met at this stage last year. OL won the first leg 2-1 in London, only for Arsenal to surge to a 4-1 success in France before beating Barcelona in the final. That was only Arsenal's second victory against the eight-time European champions, as OL have won seven and drawn one of their past ten meetings. The French side have won all five London encounters with the Gunners, including a 2-1 comeback victory through Melchie Dumornay's double on Matchday 1 of this season.

Like last season, Arsenal have recovered from a slow start this term and, after becoming the first team to eliminate Chelsea in a Women's Champions League quarter-final, are looking formidable. Gunners striker Alessia Russo leads the way as the competition's eight-goal top scorer and is fresh from scoring the winner for England in Iceland in the latest round of Women's European Qualifiers.

However, while Arsenal's semi-final success a year ago was only their second in eight attempts, OL – in a record 15th last-four tie – have progressed to 11 finals. After finishing the league phase unbeaten and level on points with Barcelona at the top of the table, OL lost the first leg of their quarter-final 1-0 to Wolfsburg. But they rallied to go through 4-1 on aggregate, with three extra-time goals in the return, showing their depth by introducing the likes of Marie-Antoinette Katoto, Tabitha Chawinga and Dumornay from the bench to help secure the victory late on.

Possible line-ups

Arsenal: Van Domselaar; Fox, Williamson, Wubben-Moy, McCabe; Little, Caldentey; Kelly, Russo, Foord; Blackstenius
Out: Catley (calf), Cooney-Cross (personal reasons), Mead (personal reasons), Reid (knee)

OL Lyonnes: Endler; Lawrence, Renard, Engen, Bacha; Dumornay, Egurrola, Heaps; Diani, Hegerberg, Chawinga
Out: Joseph (knee)
Doubtful: Micah (head)

Form guide

Arsenal
Last six games: LLWWWW (most recent result first)
Last match: Arsenal 0-2 Brighton and Hove Albion, 05/04, Women's FA Cup quarter-finals
Next match: Arsenal vs OL Lyonnes, 26/04, Women's Champions League semi-finals
Where they stand: 3rd in Women's Super League

OL Lyonnes
Last six games: WWWDLW
Last match: OL Lyonnes 4-0 Dijon, 22/04, Première Ligue
Next match: Arsenal vs OL Lyonnes, 26/04, Women's Champions League semi-finals
Where they stand: 1st in Première Ligue regular season, French Cup final, French League Cup winners

View from the camps

Renée Slegers, Arsenal coach: "We know the extreme power that they possess. They're very explosive, they're very front-footed, so they'll come at you quickly. We've faced them three times now in a year and I think absolutely there's been learnings from those three games. Where we are now, I think we have so many tools that we're possessing at the moment. I think it's just two very different styles going against each other."

Stina Blackstenius, Arsenal forward: "They were two tough, intense games last season [against OL Lyonnes]. In the second leg we came out really fast and intense. That is something we can build on, from what we went through last year. A lot is about how much we trust each other in these big situations and we see that confidence from what we did last season."

Jonatan Giráldez, OL Lyonnes coach: "We're very happy to be here preparing for a Champions League semi-final. We've worked very hard to get here, to be where we are at this stage of the season. We're still in contention to win everything. We have to put ourselves in a good position to go through to the final."

Ada Hegerberg, OL Lyonnes forward: "Playing a Champions League semi-final is always huge. You have to make the most of these kinds of moments because it could always be your last. It will be a game between two top European teams. A daunting task for us, for sure. We'll have to build on our experience at this level, on our current momentum and our drive."

Last season, Arsenal bounced back from their semi-final first-leg defeat to OL Lyonnes by winning the return fixture 4-1Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Reporter's view

Faye Hackwell, match reporter

If last season's thrilling semi-final between these sides is anything to go by, we can expect swinging momentum, spectacular goals and moments of drama. Both teams are in good domestic form, but each showed they have vulnerabilities by losing a leg of their respective quarter-finals. OL Lyonnes tend to rise to the occasion on their trips to England, but the Gunners have won all four home games in the competition since the French side's Matchday 1 victory. This promises to be a fascinating contest between two teams with rich histories in European competition – one hoping to retain their title, the other aiming to regain the trophy they have won more than anyone else.

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.