16 teams are in contention to lift the UEFA Women’s Europa Cup trophy for the very first time.
UEFA via Getty Images
After two exciting qualifying rounds, the field has been narrowed down to 16 contestants for the inaugural edition of the UEFA Women’s Europa Cup. The tournament, which will follow a straight knockout format with two-legged ties from start to finish, kicks off in November and is scheduled to conclude in early May next year. The draw for the full knockout bracket was conducted on Friday, setting the stage for what promises to be an intriguing tournament.
Three Round of 16 ties clearly stand out in terms of the quality and pedigree of the teams involved. Both Ajax and Hammarby will be aiming to go the distance in the competition, and the winner of their matchup will surely be the favorite to reach the final from their side of the draw. The Dutch giants were in the Champions League quarterfinals as recently as a couple of seasons ago, while their opponents are one of the best-supported teams in Sweden and currently locked in an intense domestic title race.
Hammarby is currently second in Damallsvenskan, four points behind the leader, BK Häcken. They, too, are involved in the Europa Cup and have a tough tie to navigate first up. Inter may be making their continental debut, but the Italians should not be underestimated as they finished second in their league last term and have some serious international quality and experience in their squad. The winner of this tie will be the clear favorite in the quarterfinal against either Fortuna Hjørring of Denmark or Iceland’s Breiðablik, but should expect another tough test in the semifinal.
On the opposite end of the same side of the bracket is another huge Round of 16 clash between PSV Eindhoven and Eintracht Frankfurt, two exciting and eye-catching teams. PSV emerged from a tough qualifying campaign as they staged a dramatic turnaround after losing by a three-goal margin the first leg of the first round against Rosenborg. They had to play a one-off game in a neutral venue for the second round as neither they nor their Belarusian opponents FC Minsk could obtain the necessary permissions to travel to an away leg. Ultimately, a 2-0 win in Tirana, Albania saw them advance.
Frankfurt, meanwhile, eased into the Round of 16 with a commanding 5-0 aggregate win over Czech side Slovácko. Niko Arnautis’ side has had a tough start to the 2025/26 season as they are currently 7th in the league having lost half of their six games, but they certainly have the attacking capability to trouble any defense on their night. The Eagles will hope to be back in form by the time the Europa Cup proper kicks off next month.
Eintracht Frankfurt head coach Niko Arnautis has some work to do in order to get his side back up to full speed in time for the Europa Cup. (Photo by Thomas Eisenhuth/Getty Images for DFB)
Getty Images for DFB
There are various other interesting teams and storylines to follow elsewhere in the competition as well. The youthful FC Nordsjælland will play their first continental knockout match against Slovenia’s ŽNK Mura, while Glasgow City and Sporting CP should produce an interesting contest after overcoming tough challenges in the qualifiers. The Portuguese side managed to see out a three-goal win over FC Rosengård, while the Scots needed a stoppage-time winner to overcome HB Køge 6-5 on aggregate.
Austria Wien also had a nerve-wracking end to their qualifying campaign as they defeated Slavia Prague on penalties, the result of which is a Round of 16 tie against Anderlecht. The winner between them will face either Sparta Prague or Swiss champions Young Boys in the quarterfinal. Whoever emerges from that will likely be the biggest underdog in the semifinals, but they are sure to have a great campaign in the process.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/neelshelat/2025/10/17/inaugural-uefa-womens-europa-cup-set-for-kickoff-after-knockout-draw/
