Concacaf launches region’s first official women’s continental club competition with annual W Champions Cup

Miami, FL – Following the successful conclusion of the inaugural Concacaf W Gold Cup over the past month, which saw the United States crowned Champions on Sunday, March 10, after a fantastic final at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium, Concacaf has announced its next strategic move in women’s football: the launch of the Concacaf W Champions Cup, the region’s first official women’s continental club championship.

The W Champions Cup will be an annual competition and will include the best clubs from North America, Central America and the Caribbean and will crown a regional women’s club champion. The tournament will also be the sole path through which Concacaf region clubs can qualify for the new FIFA Women’s Club World Cup, which FIFA has committed to launching in the near future.

The inaugural Concacaf W Champions Cup will be the 2024/25 edition, with Preliminary Round and Group Stage matches scheduled for August, September, and October 2024 and a final four centralized Semifinals and Final in May 2025.

The competition will be played annually between 11 clubs from Member Associations which meet Concacaf’s eligibility criteria. Clubs will qualify through their domestic leagues based on sporting merit through criteria which must be proposed by their Member Association and ratified by Concacaf. The qualification slots are allocated to Member Associations as follows:

*The best club from each of Canada and El Salvador will compete in a Preliminary Round play-in to determine which of them progresses to the Group Stage.

The format for the Concacaf W Champions Cup will include a Preliminary Round (Canada club vs El Salvador club) followed by a Group Stage consisting of two groups of five teams, with each team playing a total of four group stage matches (two at home; two away) in August, September, and October. At the conclusion of Group Stage play, the top two clubs from each group will progress to a final four centralized event played in May.

“Launching the Concacaf W Champions Cup is a very exciting next step on our journey of developing all aspects of women’s football in our region”, said Concacaf President and FIFA Vice President, Victor Montagliani.

“When we launched our Concacaf W women’s football strategy in 2019 we focused on creating an enhanced calendar of national team competitions that benefited all of our Member Associations, and on providing opportunities for women and girls to develop a passion for football at all levels of the sport.  We have made significant progress in those areas, albeit with much work more to do, and the growth of leagues and clubs is an important next phase in our strategy. The W Champions Cup will provide a tremendous sporting opportunity for clubs in Concacaf, and we look forward to the first edition commencing in August this year, to crowning a first champion in May 2025, and to delivering an exciting pathway to the new FIFA Women’s Club World Cup,” added Montagliani.