For the second time in three years, Lindsey Horan and Olympique Lyonnais are headed back to the UEFA Women’s Champions League Final. The eight-time trophy holders advanced 5-3 on aggerate to the Champions League Final following a 2-1 win over rivals Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday afternoon in the second leg of the semifinal at the famed Parc des Princes. Horan, who won the 2021-22 Champions League title with Lyon to cap off that campaign, went the distance in the victory and now looks to become the first American – male or female – to win multiple Champions League titles. Defender Eva Gaetino and midfielder Korbin Albert saw action for PSG in the defeat.
In the May 25 final in Bilbao, Lyon will square off against Barcelona, the same team it defeated 3-1 in the 2022 title match, after the Spanish powers advanced 2-1 on aggregate over Chelsea FC. The Blues won the first leg of the semifinal matchup 1-0, becoming the first team to defeat Barcelona at home in over five years, but saw its European campaign come to an end following a 2-0 defeat on Saturday night at Stamford Bridge. Catarina Macario, who scored for Lyon in the 2021-22 Champions League final against Barcelona, got the start for the Blues, but it was the visitors from Spain who took control of the game in the early goings, scoring in the 25th minute. Chelsea’s hopes of reaching the final suffered another significant blow in the 59th minute when Canadian defender Kadeisha Buchanan was sent off for a second yellow card, leaving the Blues with just 10 players for the final half hour of play. Barcelona capitalized on the advantage, keeping Chelsea under persistent pressure and was awarded a penalty kick in the 75th minute. Sweden’s Fridolina Rolfo converted the attempt to send Barcelona, the reigning Champions League victors, back to the final.
Despite falling short in pursuit of its first ever Champions League title, Chelsea is still in contention to win the FA Women’s Super League. Incoming USWNT head coach Emma Hayes and the Blues are second in the standings, six points back of leaders Manchester City but with two games in hand. Chelsea will close out the WSL campaign against Liverpool (May 1), Bristol City (May 5), Tottenham (May 15) and Manchester United (18) while Manchester City has just two matches remaining – a challenging showdown against third-place Arsenal on May 5 and the season-finale on May 18 against Aston Villa.
Having already clinched a spot in Champions League for next season, Arsenal drew Everton 1-1 on Sunday afternoon. Emily Fox logged yet another 90-minute performance for the Gunners, who are unbeaten in their last five matches across all competitions.
In the National Women’s Soccer League, the Kansas City Current maintained their early lead in the league standings (16 points; 5W-1D-0L), staging a remarkable comeback on Friday night to beat Angel City FC (7 points; 2W-1D-3L) 3-1 and remain unbeaten on the season. Trailing 1-0 on the road at the half, the Current scored three unanswered goals in the second half, including goals in the 90th and 90+3rd minutes to secure the come-from-behind victory.
The Orlando Pride (12 points; 3W-3D-0L) also maintained their unbeaten start and extended their win streak to three in a row with a 3-2 road win over the Washington Spirit (12 points; 4W-0D-2L) on Friday night. Orlando opened the scoring in the 22nd minute but the Spirit equalized in the 40th to send the teams into the locker room level at 1-1. Orlando reclaimed the lead in the 51st minute with a goal from Zambian international Barbra Banda and added to its advantage from the penalty spot in the 57th minute. Ashley Hatch pulled one back for the Spirit in the 65th minute, scoring her second goal in as many games with a right-footed blast from the top of the penalty box, but Washington could not find another and the Pride continued their strong start to the regular season.
WATCH: HATCH SCORES FOR SPIRIT
The third unbeaten team remaining this season, Racing Louisville FC (8 points; 1W-5D-0L) played NJ/NY Gotham FC (5 points; 1W-2D-2L) to a dramatic 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon at Red Bull Arena. Scoreless through 90 minutes, Louisville took the lead in the 90+5th minute but Gotham equalized two minutes later as Rose Lavelle scored in her Gotham debut. The 2019 World Cup champion, who was sidelined the first few weeks of the season with a lower leg injury, buried a shot from near the penalty spot to pick up the point for her new club.
WATCH: LAVELLE PULLS GOTHAM LEVEL WITH LATE STRIKE
The North Carolina Courage (12 points; 4W-0D-2L) remain unbeaten at home this season, topping Seattle Reign FC (3 points; 1W-0D-5L) at home, 1-0, on Saturday at WakeMed Soccer Park. Ashley Sanchez tallied her third assist of the season, tied for second in the league so far this year, setting up North Carolina’s goal in the 37th minute. Casey Murphy made seven saves for the Courage as she recorded her league-leading third shutout of the season.
Portland Thorns FC (7 points; 2W-1D-3L) made it back-to-back wins with a 2-0 victory on the road over the Chicago Red Stars (10 points; 3W-1D-2L) on Saturday evening. Reigning NWSL Golden Boot Winner Sophia Smith netted a first-half brace to lead the Thorns, scoring in the 10th and 26th minutes. Smith netted her fourth goal of the season just 10 minutes into the action, showing off her dribbling and 1-on-1 abilities in the box to create space before finishing with a low right-footed strike. She completed the brace less than 20 minutes later, finishing from a challenging angle on the right side of the area for her league-leading fifth goal of the regular season.
WATCH: SMITH SCORES BRACE IN PORTLAND VICTORY
The USWNT’s attacking prowess was also on display in San Diego, where Jaedyn Shaw scored the game winning goal for San Diego Wave FC (5 points; 2W-1D-2L) in their 2-1 win over Bay FC (6 points; 2W-0D-4L). Shaw broke a 1-1 deadlock in the 78th minute with a one-time finish from close range after an excellent build up. Shawtallied her first goal of the 2024 season and becoming the first teenager in NWSL history to reach 10 goals.
WATCH: SHAW NETS GAME WINNER FOR SAN DIEGO
Rounding out the weekend action, Utah Royals FC (4 points; 1W-1D-4L) and the Houston Dash (5 points; 1W-2D-3L) played to a scoreless on Saturday night in Sandy, Utah. Jane Campbell made four saves for Houston to record the clean sheet.
Broadcast information on upcoming matches featuring U.S. Women’s National Team players can be found below. All times listed are ET.
| Wednesday, May 1 | ||
| FA Women’s Super League: Liverpool vs. Chelsea FC | 2:00 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| NWSL: Orlando Pride vs. North Carolina Courage | 6:00 p.m. | NWSL+ |
| NWSL: Chicago Red Stars vs. Washington Spirit | 7:00 p.m. | NWSL+ |
| NWSL: Bay FC vs. Portland Thorns FC | 9:00 p.m. | CBS Sports Network |
| Friday, May 3 | ||
| NWSL: Utah Royals FC vs. Angel City FC | 8:30 p.m. | NWSL+ |
| NWSL: Seattle Reign vs. San Diego Wave FC | 9:00 p.m. | Prime Video |
| Saturday, May 4 | ||
| Coupe de France – Final: PSG vs. Fleury | 10:00 a.m. | FS2 |
| NWSL: NJ/NY Gotham FC vs. North Carolina Courage | 6:30 p.m. | ION |
| NWSL: Portland Thorns FC vs. Washington Spirit | 9:00 p.m. | ION |
| Sunday, May 5 | ||
| FA Women’s Super League: Manchester City vs. Arsenal | 9:15 a.m. | CBS Sports Network |
| FA Women’s Super League: West Ham United vs. Leicester City | 10:00 a.m. | The FA Player |
| NWSL: Houston Dash vs. Kansas City Current | 12:00 p.m. | CBS; Paramount+ |
| FA Women’s Super League: Chelsea FC vs. Bristol City | 1:45 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| NWSL: Orlando Pride vs. Racing Louisville | 5:00 p.m. | NWSL+ |
| NWSL: Bay FC vs. Chicago Red Stars | 7:00 p.m. | NWSL+ |