BILBAO, May 26: With a triumph over the rival it could never beat, Barcelona made it clear who’s in charge of women’s football.
Barcelona ended its losing streak against the game’s most successful club on Saturday, beating Lyon 2-0 to clinch its third Women’s Champions League title in four years.
World player of the year Aitana Bonmatí scored in the second half and former world player Alexia Putellas added a second deep in stoppage time for defending champion Barcelona in front of a record crowd of 50,827 for a final. Barcelona lost the two previous finals it played against the French side and all four of its previous matches against Lyon, which was seeking a record-extending ninth European trophy.
Victory gave Barcelona a quadruple of trophies: Champions league, Spanish league, Copa de la Reina and the Spanish Super Cup.
Lyon was playing in its 11th final in 15 seasons, and was seeking its first title since it beat Barcelona in the 2022 final. The French club also defeated Barcelona in the 2019 final. It won five titles in a row from 2016-20. Lionel Messi congratulated the women’s side on Instagram.
Their success follows 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. (PTI)
