The week of WSL action kicked off with the Manchester Derby at the Etihad Stadium. Both teams were riding high in the standings, but it was the home side that put on a dominant display to earn the three points. Three first-half goals for Manchester City from Rebecca Knaak, Khadija Shaw, and a wonder strike from Lauren Hemp were more than enough. The win put the Citizens at the top of the standings with the rest of the games to be played the next day. Manchester United remain in third, seven points behind their city rivals. The Red Devils have a big Champions League game midweek against VfL Wolfsburg in Germany.

Chelsea knew a win would take them back to the summit, but they could only manage a draw against struggling Liverpool. United States international Alyssa Thompson gave the visitors the lead, scoring in back-to-back games. Beate Olsson replied for the Reds, who slipped to the bottom of the table despite the excellent point. Chelsea has now extended their previous unbeaten run in the WSL to 34 games, beating the previous record of 33 held by themselves. However, they have now drawn back-to-back games and trail Manchester City by three points at the top.

West Ham United won their first game of the season, beating Everton 3-1 at home. It means Liverpool are the only side not to earn three points this season, but they have drawn back-to-back games, which is a positive sign. Brighton & Hove Albion and London City Lionesses also recorded wins in gameweek 9, while the North London Derby ended in a goalless draw.

The biggest crowd of the weekend in England was not seen in the WSL, but in fact, a big derby in the WSL2. The Tyne-Wear Derby between Newcastle United and Sunderland was played at St. James’ Park in front of 18,972 fans. That was more than the Manchester Derby and the North London Derby in the WSL. Newcastle won the game 3-1 and moved to fourth in the table. The crowd size shows the amazing support for the Magpies, and they will one day hope to break records in the top division.

The round of 16 of the DFB Cup took place in Germany over the weekend. Bayern Munich faced FC Ingolstadt from the second Bundesliga and struggled to prevail. It was not until the second half that the defending champions scored their first goal. In the end, they won 3-0.

There was a goal fest in the match between Eintracht Frankfurt and TSG Hoffenheim, with six goals scored in the first half alone. In the end, Frankfurt won 6–4 away from home, with Géraldine Reuteler scoring twice. SC Sand caused an upset against 1. FC Köln. The second division leaders beat Köln 3–2 in front of 1,235 fans at the Adams Arena.

On Sunday evening, two matches went to penalty shootouts. HSV defeated Leverkusen 4–2 in a penalty shootout after a 1–1 draw in regular time. Reaching the quarter-finals is a big step for the Hamburg women! The match between RB Leipzig and Werder Bremen was also an exciting one. The score was also 1-1 after regular time. Werder Bremen prevailed 5-4 on penalties.

Record winners of the trophy, VfL Wolfsburg won 3–1 against SC Freiburg, and Carl Zeiss Jena secured a 1–0 victory against Union Berlin. SGS Essen also made it through to the next round, beating Turbine Potsdam 1–0. The DFB Cup quarter-finals will continue from 11 to 23 March. The final will take place on 14 May in Cologne.

Hoffenheim has parted ways with coach Theodoros Dedes. According to an official statement, the contract, which was due to run until summer 2026, was terminated ‘by mutual agreement’. TSG were knocked out of the DFB Cup by Frankfurt at the weekend. Assistant coach Thomas Johrden will now take over on an interim basis. Ralf Zwanziger, head of women's football, is quoted as saying that a ‘solution’ could be presented by the winter break.

The first women’s El Clasico of the season took place this past weekend, and it was everything we expected as fans. Polish striker Ewa Pajor scored twice in the first half for Barca, but it was far from a one-sided half. Linda Caicedo and Naomie Feller had big chances with the score at 0-0 and 1-0, but could not beat the goalkeeper Catalina Coll. The second half was much the same, with the home side controlling the ball. However, the best chances were falling to Las Blancas.

In the 81st minute, Pau Quesada’s side were awarded a controversial penalty when Coll was adjudged to have brought down Athenea del Castillo. The hero from the previous El Clasico, Caroline Weir, stepped up, but saw her penalty saved by Coll. Madrid pushed to get back into the game, but it was Barca who scored twice in added time. Sydney Schertenleib and Aitana Bonmati secured the points, putting the Catalan side seven points ahead of their rivals.

Atletico Madrid jumped above their city rivals with a 2-0 win over Levante Badalona. Vilde Bøe Risa and Lydia Rodriguez scored as they moved to 24 points, the same as Real Sociedad, who could only manage a 1-1 draw at home to Athletic Club. Deportivo La Coruna won 1-0 at home to bottom of the table Levante, their first win in seven games. Madrid CFF, Sevilla, and Espanyol also recorded wins in Matchday 11.

Como secured its third consecutive victory over the weekend. The northern Italian team also beat Milan, who had defeated Juventus the week before, 1–0. Referee Colaninno awarded a total of three penalties. Milan missed the first one shortly before half-time. In the second half, Nadine Nischler hit the crossbar from the spot. In the final stages, there was another foul in the penalty area. The referee awarded a penalty to Como and sent off Milan's Keijzer. Nischler stepped up again – and scored. Como now sits in second place with 12 points, behind AS Roma. They defeated their city rivals in Sunday's derby 1-0 thanks to a goal from Di Guglielmo in the first half.

Juventus also got back on track, securing a comfortable 2-0 home win against Genoa. Girelli and Vangsgaard scored the goals for ‘Le Bianconere’. Fiorentina only managed a 1-1 draw against Parma – they are now in third place, just one point ahead of Juventus.

Ternana picked up their first points of the season at the weekend, with the newly promoted side winning their relegation battle against Sassuolo 1–0. Things are not going according to plan for Inter. Last year's runners-up are winless in five games and sit ninth in the table with six points. On Sunday, they lost 1–0 to Napoli.

Washington Spirit, who finished second in the regular season, faced Portland Thorns in the semi-finals. After just under half an hour, Spirit led 1-0. Gift Monday scored her tenth goal of the season. In the second half, in the 83rd minute, Croix Bethune scored to make it 2-0. With the game looking won, Trinity Rodman came on for Sofia Cantore in the 90th minute. It was her first appearance since re-injuring her knee just under a month ago.

Was this possibly the last time that Trin played at Audi Field as a Washington Spirit player? Her contract expires in the summer, and rumour has it that several English teams are interested in signing the American star player.

Gotham FC qualified for the playoffs as the eighth team and faced the Shield winners, Kansas City Current. They entered this match as underdogs, but then surprisingly won 2-1. However, the task in the semi-final was no easier: on Sunday, they played Orlando Pride, the reigning champions with superstar Marta. After the quarter-finals, it was clear that they were no longer considered underdogs. Nevertheless, Pride had every chance of winning the game and reaching the final. But Gotham FC, with German national team goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger and the NWSL's second-highest scorer Esther Gonzalez, had no reason to hide and created chances early in the game. However, the game remained evenly balanced – and goalless – until well into injury time. It was only in the seventh minute of injury time that the New Yorkers were able to break through. Jaedyn Shaw scored the winning goal, and shortly afterwards Berger prevented the equaliser.

Next weekend, they will play the final at PayPal Park in San José against the Washington Spirit.

Vlatko Andonovski, coach of Kansas City Current since 2023, will step down from his role as the coach. As announced on Friday, he will take on a new position as the club's global sporting director. It is not yet known who will succeed him in the coaching position. Until a new person is found, Andonovski will continue to coach the team.

Three teams sit on maximum points after Matchday 3 of the Champions League. OL Lyonnes, Manchester United, and Barcelona all sit on nine points. Reigning champions Arsenal sit on three points, losing their latest game 3-2 to Bayern Munich. This was despite leading the German side 2-0 at halftime. Emily Fox and Mariona Caldentey put the visitors in firm control of the game. However, Bayern were miles better in the second half with a goal from Glodis Perla Viggosdottir completing the turnaround.

Round 4 takes place this week with Arsenal facing Real Madrid in a crucial game for the champions. There is also a repeat of last season’s semi-final as Chelsea face Barcelona. Paris Saint-Germain sits on zero points and must find a way to get three points at home against Bayern Munich.

Tobin Heath will be inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame on 1 May 2026. While recording an episode of ‘The RE-CAP Show’ podcast with her wife, Christen Press, the 37-year-old was surprised by the news from her mother. It comes as no surprise that Heath was voted into the Hall of Fame by her fellow footballers. After all, she has won two World Cup titles and three Olympic medals (two gold and one bronze) with the US national team.

Mallory Pugh Swanson, who plays for the Chicago Stars, and her husband, Dansby Swanson, who plays for the Chicago Cubs in Major League Baseball, have become parents for the first time. On Saturday, they announced the birth of their child, Josie James Swanson.

There is more baby news from Chelsea player Guro Reiten: she and her partner, Julie Nilssen, announced the birth of their baby boy, Felix, on Friday.