Wrexham Women will make history this week when they discover their opponents for the first UEFA Women's Champions League match in the club's history.
The men's first team has an illustrious history in European competition thanks to its exploits in the former European Cup Winners' Cup, where Wrexham competed eight times between 1972 and 1995.
Wrexham qualified for the now-defunct competition by winning the Welsh Cup but had never secured European qualification through its league position. That changed last season when the women's team won its first-ever Adran Premier title. The triumph not only delivered silverware but also earned the club a place in the UEFA Women's Champions League qualifying rounds.
The Red Dragons enter the competition in the first qualifying round as one the lowest-ranked club and face a significant challenge if they hope to reach the league phase. Here's everything you need to know ahead of the draw.
When Is the Women's Champions League Draw?
The draw for the first qualifying round of the 2026–27 UEFA Women's Champions League will take place on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
The ceremony will be held at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland, and is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. BST (9 a.m. ET).
Cardiff City has represented Wales in each of the past three Women's Champions League campaigns but failed to win a match or score a goal. Wrexham will aim to become the first Welsh club to win a Women's Champions League qualifying match since Cardiff Met achieved the feat in 2019.
How Does the Women's Champions League Draw Work?
The first qualifying round will feature 20 domestic champions from the lowest-ranked nations in UEFA's association coefficient rankings.
These rankings are determined by the performances of clubs from each nation in European competitions over the previous five seasons. Among UEFA’s 51 eligible associations, Wales ranks 48th, ahead of only the Faroe Islands, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
With so many teams involved, the first qualifying round uses a mini-tournament format. Clubs are drawn into five groups of four teams, with one club in each group selected to host the tournament. Sports Illustrated understands Wrexham are keen to host their mini-tournament if selected.
When Will Wrexham Play Their First Champions League Match?
Wrexham will play their semifinal match against a seeded club on Wednesday, July 22, with the winners advancing to the final on Saturday, July 25. Only the tournament winner will progress to the second qualifying round, while the remaining teams will be eliminated. A third-place playoff between the losing semifinalists will also be played. Although it has no impact on qualification, the match does contribute to future coefficient rankings.
The six mini-tournament winners from the first qualifying round advance to the second qualifying round, where they are joined by 22 additional domestic champions with higher coefficient rankings for another series of mini-tournaments.
The seven winners from the second qualifying round then advance to the third and final qualifying round, where they are joined by another higher-ranked domestic champion. Those eight teams contest two-legged ties, with the winners advancing to the league phase.
In short, Wrexham would need to win two mini-tournaments and then a two-legged playoff against increasingly stronger opposition to reach the Champions League league phase.
Who Can Wrexham Face in the Champions League Draw?
Seeded Teams
| Club | Nation | Club coefficient |
|---|---|---|
| Racing Union | Luxembourg | 8.500 |
| PAOK | Greece | 8.000 |
| Spartak Myjava | Slovakia | 6.000 |
| Flora | Estonia | 5.500 |
| Mitrovica | Kosovo | 4.000 |
| Glentoran | Northern Ireland | 4.000 |
| Kí Klaksvík | Faroe Islands | 4.000 |
| Athlone Town | Republic of Ireland | 2.500 |
| Pyunik | Armenia | 2.500 |
| WFC Nike Lusso | Georgia | 1.300 |
Unseeded Teams
| Club | Nation | Club coefficient |
|---|---|---|
| Neftci | Azerbaijan | 2.000 |
| Czarni Sosnowiec | Poland | 1.600 |
| Mgarr United | Malta | 1.500 |
| Riga FC | Latvia | 1.500 |
| ZFK Buducnost | Montenegro | 1.300 |
| ZFK Skopje 2014 | North Macedonia | 1.300 |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | Israel | 1.200 |
| PFC Ludogorets | Bulgaria | 1.000 |
| FC Zimbru Chisinau | Moldova | 0.900 |
| Wrexham | Wales | 0.800 |
As this is the club's first season in European competition, Wrexham enters the Women's Champions League draw with the lowest club coefficient in the field. As a result, the Red Dragons will be one of the two unseeded teams in their group and will face one of the seeded clubs in the semifinal.
Wrexham's club coefficient stands at just 0.800, the lowest among the participating teams. Moldovan club FC Zimbru Chișinău is next with a coefficient of 0.900.
Based on the current coefficients, the strongest potential opponents for Wrexham are Luxembourg’s Racing Union, Greece’s PAOK and Slovakia’s Spartak Myjava.
