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TThousands are expected to travel from Barcelona to Bilbao, and from Catalonia to the Basque Country northwest. With the Women’s Champions League coming to a close at San Mames, it could feel like a home final for Barcelona. It may be close, even if it’s not being held at the Camp Nou. And it may be fitting, given how much of Barcelona’s success has been home-grown and the influence of its iconic La Masia academy on the European final against Lyon.
For the past decade, Lyon has been a powerhouse in European women’s football, with their star-studded squad winning the Women’s Champions League a record eight times between 2011 and 2022. Barcelona has never beaten Lyon, losing to French teams in the 2019 and 2022 Champions League finals, but they are now the undisputed new force in the women’s club game, unbeaten in Spain this season and aiming to defend their Champions League title. In that regard, Barcelona has its own identity to thank, one that permeates their past, present and future.
“It’s not just about winning,” said Vicky Losada, the former Barcelona captain who led the team to its first Women’s Champions League title in 2021. Independent“For us it’s all about how to win, how to play.” Barcelona developed the core players who made it to Spain’s first Women’s World Cup victory, players who grew up together learning the Barcelona style of play. “They taught us the Barca way,” says Losada, recalling the message she grew up hearing on the training ground. “Always enjoy the ball, always want the ball.”
Losada’s idols were Andrés Iniesta and Xavi Hernández. She doesn’t remember watching women’s football on TV growing up, apart from the powerhouses of the U.S. national team. But Iniesta and Xavi were graduates of La Masia, a school fostered by the same philosophy fostered by Johan Cruyff that shaped Pep Guardiola. And when Losada arrived at Barcelona in the mid-2000s, the men’s team was reborn, winning the Champions League for the first time in 15 years in 2006, the influence of Barcelona’s identity was extended to the emerging women’s team.
When Losada left Barcelona after their first Women’s Champions League title, she was part of a team that had grown together under clear principles until they were the strongest in Europe. There were tough losses in Europe, especially against Lyon, but Losada and her teammates focused on staying true to their identity: wanting the ball, possessing it and dominating. “At Barça, that’s very important,” Losada says. “It’s very big. We knew our objective, we knew how we wanted to win. Even if we lost, it was our way.” Now, Barcelona girls have a variety of role models to look up to when watching football on TV.
By Losada’s final season, Barcelona had completed a perfect year, winning every game in La Liga and beating Chelsea 4-0 to win the Women’s Champions League. It was a statement win, a win that showed Barcelona who they truly were. But the highlight of that night in Gothenburg, says Losada, was the members of the team that traveled with them. They included Aitana Bommati, Alexia Putellas, Mariona Caldentei, Mapi Leon and Patri Guijarro. Losada was part of Barcelona’s leadership group that pushed to bring young players into the first team. “We knew we had good, talented players, but we needed to improve the conditions for them,” she says.
Three years later, Barcelona was at the core of the Spain team that won the Women’s World Cup for the first time, a feat that could have been even better with players like Leão and Guijarro in the team’s ranks. After all, despite the off-pitch issues that were brought to light by former Spanish Football Federation president Luis Rubiales in the aftermath of the Women’s World Cup final and that continue to this day, Spain’s victory over England in Sydney proved that Spain is now a leader in the development and production of young players.
This may just be the beginning of their dominance. Spain are also world champions at U-20 and U-17 level, and the U-17s were just crowned European champions two weeks ago, beating England. “It feels like we’re just getting started,” agrees Losada. “There’s a lot more to come.”
In soccer-rich Spain, the explosion in the popularity of women’s football was always at risk of being swamped, but an institution like Barcelona, which boasts world-record attendances at the Camp Nou, has always had the power to push it further. La Masia now features its first female players, a tradition that has been passed down for generations on the men’s team.
“We pushed it,” Losada says. “It’s a big step. They have breakfast there, they eat there, they go to school. They train in the morning, they go to school in the afternoon. Football is teaching them everything. Today we have 10 girls. In five years we might have 20.” About a month ago, Losada was watching Barcelona play in La Liga F, where five stars from the development squad were there, mixing with senior pros and established stars. “I couldn’t tell the difference,” she says.
Barcelona’s ability to develop talent is equal to their ability to attract it. They have developed players with finesse on the ball in central areas, but their success has also been bolstered by the acquisition of some of the world’s best wide players, such as Norway’s Caroline Graham Hansen, Sweden’s Fridrina Rolfo and, before that, Dutch winger Lieke Martens. As European champions, Barcelona have sought out the best players in the world at their positions, with different skill sets and attitudes, such as England’s Keira Walsh and Lucy Bronze, whenever they had the chance.
A first win over eight-time European champions Lyon in Bilbao would be the final hurdle before this era becomes uniquely Barcelona, but it may just be the beginning.
Watch Barcelona vs Lyon in the Women’s Champions League Final live and free on DAZN
Current Brighton player, former FC Barcelona captain and Spain international Vicky Losada attended the final day of the Bloomsbury x LALIGA schools tournament in north London to encourage young girls to take up football.