United Women to play Brann in Champions League

The Reds advanced to the competition's final qualifying stage with a 1-0 victory over Hammarby in Sweden on Saturday.

A two-legged tie against Brann now awaits, with our opponents due to host the first game on 11 September, before the return leg at our home on 18 September.

United and Brann have never met competitively, although there are several links between the teams ahead of next month's clashes.

That's because Reds duo Lisa Naalsund and Elisabeth Terland both played for our upcoming opponents before their respective moves to English football.

Naalsund was at Brann - formerly known as Sandviken - for four seasons between 2019 and 2022, while Terland teamed up with her now-United colleague during the Bergen side's title-winning campaigns of 2021 and 2022.

They currently top the Norwegian division after 18 matches of the 2025 season, under the management of recent Crystal Palace Women boss Leif Gunnar Smerud, and beat both Inter and Braga in their Champions League mini-tournament to reach this stage of the European competition.

The winner of the two-legged contest will advance to the Champions League's centrepiece 18-team league phase, while the loser will drop into the newly created Women's Europa Cup.

Full details for both fixtures will be released in due course, including kick-off times, stadium details and ticket information.

THIRD QUALIFYING ROUND DRAW

League Path 

BK Hacken (SWE) v Atletico Madrid (ESP)
Paris FC (FRA) v FK Austria Wien (AUT)
SK Brann (NOR) v UNITED (ENG)
Eintracht Frankfurt (GER) v Real Madrid (ESP)
AS Roma (ITA) v Sporting Club (POR)

Champions Path

Valerenga (NOR) v Ferencvaros (HUN)
FC Vorskla Poltava (UKR) v OH Leuven (BEL)
SKN St. Polten (AUT) v Fortuna Hjorring (DEN)
GKS Katowice (POL) v FC Twente (NED)