Cutting the cord: Wolfsburg face Lyon in Kiev before women’s final goes ‘standalone’

May 24 – Wolfsburg and Lyon meet in the final of the UEFA Women’s Champions League tonight in Kiev, two days before Liverpool and Real Madrid play the men’s final. In future UEFA says it is “moving the finals become a centrepiece of the calendar in their own right.”

Next year the women’s final will be held in Budapest while the men will play in Madrid. The change reflects the growth of the women’s game with the Women’s EURO 2017 showing a 50% increase in cumulative audience and the successful launch of the Together #WePlayStrong initiative across Europe.

UEFA has unbundled its sponsorship rights from the men’s game to open up the women’s game to a wider commercial and viewing audience, and alter perceptions. In 2017, the Eurpean governing body reported a 7.5% increase in registered girls and women participating across the 55 member associations

“The potential for women’s football is limitless and it is with this in mind that we decided to separate the two UEFA Champions League events. That will give the women’s game a platform of its own, to continue to grow and to become an unmissable event and television spectacle in its own right,” said UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin.

“We saw at Women’s EURO how popular the game has become, both from a fan experience perspective and also to an ever-growing television audience. At UEFA we have worked harder than ever this year to maximise the potential of women’s football to tap into that growing market.”

FIFA World Player of the Year Nadine Kessler, newly appointed head of UEFA’s women’s football unit, said: “The continued growth of women’s football is a strategic priority for UEFA. This is a long-term project but it’s heartening to see the game become more professional across Europe. With that comes increased opportunity, exposure and affinity.”

Wolfsburg and Lyon will meet for the third time in a Champions League final as Lyon hunt for their third consecutive title and a record fifth in total. Wolfsburg, in their fourth final, as seeking their third title.

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