Ranking the 10 Best UEFA Women's Champions League Winners of All Time | OneFootball

UEFA Women's Champions League Winner Ranked

10. Frankfurt 2007–08

One of the forgotten titans of the women's game, Frankfurt have conquered Europe four times, including the first-ever edition of the UEFA Women's Cup/Champions League in 2001–02. But it is the 2007–08 team that will live on as one of the best groups assembled.

Frankfurt's strengths were in both boxes. They were anchored at the back by U.S. defenders Ali Krieger and Gina Lewandowski, with one of the best goalkeepers Europe has ever seen in Silke Rottenberg (who was injured in the final) behind them. In the attack, Conny Pohlers and another record-breaker, Birgit Prinz, did the damage. Defeating a strong Umeå team that included Marta and Mami Yamaguchi was as good as it got in those early years of the tournament.

9. Arsenal 2006–07

This legendary Arsenal team won every single match it competed in domestically, sweeping all three trophies in England. In Europe, the Gunners were tested further. A 2–2 draw away to Brøndby in the first leg of the semifinals, where Kelly Smith scored a brace and was then sent off, and a 0–0 draw with unlucky losers Umeå in the final second leg were the only two matches Arsenal failed to win all season.

Alex Scott scored the winning goal in the final, an extraordinary long-range hit that drifted into a small pocket of space beneath the crossbar. Although Smith missed that 2007 final, a litany of legends, including Rachel Yankey, Anita Asante, Emma Byrne and Karen Carney, made Arsenal the only English team to ever lift the European Cup.

8. Barcelona 2020–21

Barcelona's first-ever Champions League title set the tone for what would become their era of domination. Outside of a somewhat meaningless second leg quarterfinal 2–1 defeat to Manchester City, with Barcelona still winning 4–2 on aggregate, this was a flawless European season. There was a shock factor to just how easy they made it look.

Alexia Putellas was at her mesmerizing best with the emergent Aitana Bonmatí collaborating in the midfield. The duo both scored in the final, a 4–0 thrashing of Chelsea, where all the goals came in the first half. Caroline Graham Hansen was the unsung hero who terrorized opponents throughout this campaign, notching three goals and five assists. Jenni Hermoso finished as the joint top scorer in the Champions League with six goals.

7. Barcelona 2022–23

The Catalans' second-ever European title was extremely impressive because it came without the talismanic Putellas, who had ruptured her ACL in the summer of 2022. This Barcelona team developed a new orbit around Bonmatí, who finished her Champions League campaign featuring in every match for Barcelona and was tied with the most goals on the team (five). The squad had also been bolstered by the arrivals of Lucy Bronze and Keira Walsh.

A 3–1 defeat away to Bayern Munich in the group stage posed some questions for this group. However, this Barcelona team will forever be remembered for its resilience in the face of setbacks. In one of the greatest finals the tournament has ever seen, Barcelona roared back from 2–0 down at halftime to defeat Wolfsburg 3–2. Patri Guijarro scored a brace and Fridolina Rolfö netted the title-winning goal. Putellas made her only European appearance of the season in a symbolic substitution for Bonmatí in the 90th minute of that breathtaking final against Wolfsburg.

6. Wolfsburg 2013–14

A well-balanced Wolfsburg won their second consecutive title by pipping Swedish side Tyresö to the trophy in arguably the greatest Champions League final of all time, which finished 4–3 to the Germans in Lisbon. Wolfsburg boasted a balanced attack with Pohlers and Martina Müller in unstoppable form, and a 22-year-old Alex Popp also bursting into the elite tier of European soccer. Captain Nadine Kessler was nearing the end of her career, but put in some exceptional performances in the latter rounds.

Wolfsburg's Müller finished as the top scorer in the Champions League with 10 goals, just ahead of Tyreso's Christen Press, who had nine, and Marta, who had seven. Both Müller and Marta scored braces in the final. Tyresö took a 2–0 lead at the break, and then Wolfsburg fought back with four goals in the second half. Müller chaotically tapped home the winning goal after an incredible dribble from Kessler.

5. Lyon 2021–22

Lyon's eighth Champions League title was perhaps their first as true underdogs, with Barcelona the favorites to retain the title. Lyon dropped a group stage match 1–0 to Bayern Munich and then suffered a nervy 2–1 first-leg defeat to Juventus in the quarterfinals before a confident 3–1 win in the return fixture.

Just like Barcelona had shocked Chelsea early in 2021, Lyon surprised Barcelona in the 2022 final by going 3–0 up after 33 minutes. Putellas scored her 11th Champions League goal of the campaign as a consolation, but Lyon came away 3–1 winners. This was a fantastic Lyon team, but one in transition. The young Catarina Macario was Lyon's top scorer with eight goals, including a goal in the final, with French veteran Amandine Henry having one final season as an elite midfielder.

4. Lyon 2017–18

Right in the heart of Lyon's domination was the stingy Ada Hegerberg-led 2017–18 team. A flawless campaign that featured six clean sheets and just three goals conceded. The back four of Selma Bacha, Wendie Renard, Griedge Mbock Bathy and Bronze was one of the best assembled. Hegerberg finished with a record 15 Champions League goals.

The final was a curious one, with an elite Wolfsburg team holding Lyon to 0–0 in 90 minutes. A chaotic overtime period unfolded where Pernille Harder put Wolfsburg 1–0, Popp was then sent off for Wolfsburg and Lyon went on to smash four unanswered goals past the Germans in the remaining 18 minutes of overtime as it finished 4–1.

3. Lyon 2019–20

Two years later, Lyon and Wolfsburg dueled it out again for the Champions League. This time, Wolfsburg looked outmatched and were defeated 3–1 in the final. Delphine Cascarino put in a rip-roaring display on the right wing and was involved in both of Lyon's opening goals scored by Eugénie Le Sommer and Saki Kumagai. Due to COVID-19, the competition was shortened and played in a bubble without second legs.

Despite the curtailed format, Lyon's team continued to be defensively dominant with Bronze in her peak and Canadian center-back Kadeisha Buchanan partnering Renard in the middle of the defense. With no fans in the stadium and Hegerberg missing through injury, Lyon's seventh title is lacking some allure. But don't underestimate their greatness.

2. Lyon 2018–19

Of Lyon's eight titles, the 2018–19 team feels like both the team at its peak and the opposition being defeated with the most ease. Lyon's route to the final included 6–3 and 3–2 aggregate wins over Wolfsburg and Chelsea. The 1–1 draw with Chelsea in the semifinal second leg was the only match Lyon failed to win.

But it was the final that portrayed Lyon as one of the best sides ever. Lyon tormented Barcelona with a 4–1 win to lift the trophy, Hegerberg's first-half hat trick remains one of the most iconic moments and performances in tournament history. Lyon's starting XI was brilliant, but the depth on the bench showed how far ahead they were of the competition. Jess Fishlock is replaced by Kumagai, and Shanice van de Sanden is subbed out for Cascarino. It didn't feel close.

1. Barcelona 2023–24

As the Champions League has evolved, and the competition has gotten stronger and stronger, Barcelona's most recent title has come into focus as perhaps the greatest ever. The group stage was a procession, with 27 goals scored and just five conceded. Four of those goals came in a chaotic 4–4 draw with Benfica when Barcelona were already qualified for the knockout rounds. The Catalans suffered just one defeat, a 1–0 loss to Chelsea at home in the first leg of the semifinals.

The calm, meticulous excellence of Barcelona in 2023–24 was the final chapter of manager Jonatan Giráldez's three seasons in charge. One thing is winning the Champions League, but retaining it effortlessly was even more impressive. The 2–0 win in the final over Lyon was poetic. The goals came from Barcelona's two midfield superstars: Bonmatí with the first after the hour mark and then Putellas at the death. With Cata Coll starting her first final, Esmee Brugts and Claudia Pina coming off the bench, the next generation also began to emerge. For balance, depth and control, and the opponents they defeated, this was the greatest collective we've seen.