Barcelona and OL Lyonnes will meet in Oslo for the UEFA Women’s Champions League final on Saturday, as the record winners face the team who have reached six consecutive finals.
The Catalan side have won all three of their European titles since 2020, while Lyon’s first came as early as 2011.
Both of their last victories came against each other, with Barcelona beating Lyon in 2024 and Lyon collecting their eighth title against Barcelona in 2022.
In fact, their previous four meetings have all come in showpiece finals which were largely dominated by Lyon until 2024 when Barcelona finally managed to record a win against the team who dominated European women’s football for so long.
The first final - Budapest 2019
Barcelona reached the final for the first time in 2019, securing their place at the Groupama Arena with a 2-0 aggregate win over Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, Lyon were on the hunt for their fourth trophy in a row having secured their qualification with a narrow win over Chelsea.
Lyon’s record in the competition at the time told the story of their dominance and, although Barcelona would eventually become worthy challengers, it was certainly not evident from their first final appearance.
Ada Hegerberg had a hattrick inside the opening half hour and, with the addition of an early Dzsenifer Marozsán goal, Lyon were 4-0 up at half-time.
FOTO: Ada Hegerberg collecting the Champions League trophy after scoring a first half hattrick in the final. Source: Nurphoto - Getty Images
There were chances for Barcelona in the second half as Lyon took their foot of the gas. Asisat Oshoala eventually took one in the dying minutes - ultimately just a constellation on the day but a goal to look back on as Barcelona’s first in a European final.
Each of Hegerberg’s goals were extremely similar: crosses into the box and poachers’ finishes as Barcelona continually struggled to defend in wide areas.
So many players in the Lyon squad on the day were in the prime of their career. Hegerberg was in possession of the inaugural Ballon d'Or Féminin with four of her teammates also included in the top 10.
To this day three of the 2019 squad are still at the club, including captain Wendie Renard and Hegerberg. An 18 year old Selma Bacha, who has become a key player for Lyon in the present day, also came off the bench late on.
It was a harsh lesson for Barcelona but evidently one which benefitted many of the squad who have become Blaugrana stars. Both Aitana Bonmatí and Alexia Putellas started on the day, as well as Mapi León and Marta Torrejón in defence.
A clash of giants - Turin 2022
By 2022, Barcelona had confirmed their status among Europe’s elite, winning their first Champions League title the year prior with a 4-0 demolition of Chelsea in Gothenburg.
On the road to defending their title, they breezed past Real Madrid and Wolfsburg in the quarter and semi-finals respectively. Over 90,000 people attended each of their home matches and they took full advantage of their home crowd, scoring five in each match.
Meanwhile, Lyon saw off Juventus and PSG on their way to the final but the journey was not so easy for them, particularly away at Juventus when the Italian side managed a shock victory in the first leg.
For the first time in years, Lyon were no longer the certain favourites in the final. Putellas was the Ballon d’Or holder following Barcelona’s first European title and she, Bonmati and Patri Guijarro were firmly establishing themselves as the most formidable midfield trio in the world.
But football is played on grass, not paper.
Lyon still boasted more experience of such big occasions and, particularly, of winning on the biggest stage.
It was one of their most experienced players who opened the scoring. Just six minutes in, Amandine Henry struck from distance, sending her effort flying into the top corner beyond Sandra Paños.
FOTO: Henry scored the opening goal in the 2022 final from 30 yards out. Source: Tullio Puglia - UEFA.
The perennial champions suffocated Barcelona in the first half and, when Hegerberg nodded in a second, both sets of players might have felt they had gone back in time to 2019.
Catarina Macario made it three in the 33rd minute and, although Putellas pulled one back just before half-time, Lyon were able to see out the game with a two goal advantage in the second half.
The game may have followed a very similar pattern to the previous final, however, it was an even greater statement of intent from Lyon. A statement to remind everyone of the levels they could reach and their ability to perform when it mattered most.
A great farewell - Bilbao 2024
There were many similarities between Barcelona and Lyon as they entered San Mamés Stadium. Both came from behind to qualify for the final and both managers were moving on to new challenges the following season.
One of those was Jonatan Giráldez, now Lyon boss, who was set to move to the US and coach Washington Spirit in the NWSL. After failing to beat Sonia Bompastor’s Lyon side in Turin, he lifted his first European trophy as head coach when his Barcelona team came back from two goals down to beat Wolfsburg in the final.
With this being the most recent meeting between the two, many of the starters remain the same two years later.
That said, there were several players on the Barcelona bench that day who are more than likely to play from the start in Oslo. Putellas was returning from injury and came from the bench to score her iconic last minute goal.
FOTO: Putellas confirmed Barcelona's third European title with a late goal to double their lead. Source: Europa Press Sports - Getty Images.
The Lyon team this year will also likely look quite similar, however, also with the inclusion of Ingrid Engen - a starter at centre-back for Barcelona two years ago.
It was a cagey affair with each team struggling to create any real chances. Eventually, it fell to Bonmati to put Barcelona ahead: a goal which played a big part in securing her second consecutive Ballon d’Or.
Lyon did continue to push for an equaliser, bringing on Hegerberg for the final 10 minutes, only for Putellas to put the game to bed in added time.
The win made it a perfect goodbye for Giráldez as Barcelona finally defeated their last remaining nemesis in Europe.
For Lyon, it signalled a need to make some changes to the squad, to bring in some more youthful options across the pitch such as Jule Brand and Lily Yohannes who have both played a big part in their road to the final this time around.