Chelsea, Lyon and Roma stay perfect with victories in Women's Champions League

Chelsea, Lyon and Roma all stayed perfect in the Women’s Champions League by cruising to away victories on Thursday.

Roma routed Galatasaray at Istanbul 6-1, Chelsea beat Twente in the Netherlands 3-1 and eight-time champion Lyon won 2-0 at Wolfsburg.

Real Madrid claimed its first victory of the campaign by easing past Celtic 4-0.

Roma and Lyon both have six points in Group A. Two-time champion Wolfsburg and Galatasaray, the first Turkish team to reach the group stage, have no points.

In Group B, Chelsea leads with six points, with Madrid and Twente on three and Celtic last bottom without a point.

Wolfsburg striker Alexandra Popp made her 100th competition appearance — becoming only the second player to reach the mark but it was Lyon defender Wendie Renard, the only one who has played more, who stole the show.

Renard’s header found the back of the net early on in her 118th game in the competition.

U.S. international Lindsey Horan netted from the penalty spot in the second half.

Lyon is the competition’s record eight-time champion but last won the trophy in 2022. It was runner-up last season to Barcelona.

In a matchup between the Italian and Turkish champions, Roma dominated in Istanbul.

Summer signing Hawa Cissoko scored in the seventh minute to mark her debut game in the competition. The France defender who transferred from West Ham headed home off Manuela Giugliano's corner.

Valentina Giacinti made it 2-0 in the 24th minute when she was left unmarked near the spot to head in Verena Hanshaw's cross.

Giugliano failed to convert from the spot in the first-half stoppage time but Emilie Haavi got Roma's third with a right-footed blast past goalkeeper Gamze Yaman early in the second.

Giugliano finally found the back of the net from close range for a 4-0 lead before Andrea Staskova scored the consolation goal for the hosts. Roma substitutes Marta Pandini and Alice Corelli also scored.

Chelsea struck early in another winning performance under new coach Sonia Bompastor, who joined from Lyon.

Agnes Beever-Jones put the Blues ahead with a long-distance deflected strike in the seventh minute and Maika Hamano made it 2-0 a short time later by lifting the ball over goalkeeper Olivia Clark from outside the area.

Substitute Guro Reiten added the third in the second from the spot just past the hour mark.

On Saturday, Chelsea beat city rival Arsenal 2-1 in the Women’s Super League.

Real Madrid scored three second-half goals in 11 minutes against Celtic in Group B.

The Spanish team had lost to Chelsea 3-2 in the first round and drew with Atlético 1-1 in the Madrid derby over the weekend.

Caroline Weir fired a long-range left-footer from outside the box into the far top corner in the seventh minute.

The visitors kept if close until the 72nd minute, when Signe Bruun headed home the second goal followed eight minutes later by Caroline Moller's lob of goalkeeper Kelsey Daugherty for a 3-0 lead. Linda Caicedo then converted from the penalty spot.

It's back-to-back losses for Scottish club Celtic, making its debut in the group stage. It has yet to score.

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Galatasaray's Ebru Topcu, left, tussles for the ball with Roma's Manuela Giugliano during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Roma's Valentina Giacinti, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring their side's second goal during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Galatasaray's Andrea Staskova, center, fights for the ball with Roma's Saki Kumagai, left, and Moeka Minami during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Roma's Valentina Giacinti, left, celebrates with teammate Giada Greggi after scoring their side's second goal during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Roma's players celebrate after teammate Valentina Giacinti scored their side's second goal during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Galatasaray's Kristina Bakarandze, left, vies for the ball with Roma's Evelyne Viens during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Galatasaray's Ebru Topcu, center, fights for the ball with Roma's Saki Kumagai, left, and Verena Hanshaw during the women's Champions League group A soccer match between Galatasaray and Roma at Ataturk Olympic stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Photo via AP)

Lyon's Lindsey Horan scores from the penalty spot during the Women's Champions League group stage soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyon at the AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Thursday Oct. 17, 2024. (Swen Pförtner/dpa via AP)

Wolfsburg's Merle Frohms shoots the ball during the Women's Champions League group stage soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyon, at AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Thursday Oct. 17, 2024. (Swen Pförtner/dpa via AP)

Lyon's Lindsey Horan celebrates with teammates after scoring their side's second goal of the game during the Women's Champions League group stage soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyon at the AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Thursday Oct. 17, 2024. (Swen Pförtner/dpa via AP)

Lyon's Wendie Renard, top let, heads the ball to score their side's first goal of the game during the Women's Champions League group stage soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyon, at the AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Thursday Oct. 17, 2024. (Swen Pförtner/dpa via AP)

Lyon's Lindsey Horan celebrates after scoring a goal during the Women's Champions League group stage soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Olympique Lyon, at the AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Thursday Oct. 17, 2024. (Swen Pförtner/dpa via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A student loan cancellation program for public service workers has granted relief to more than 1 million Americans — up from just 7,000 who were approved before it was updated by the Biden administration two years ago.

President Joe Biden announced the milestone on Thursday, saying his administration restored a promise to America’s teachers, firefighters, nurses and other public servants. He celebrated it even as his broader student loan plans remain halted by courts following legal challenges by Republican-led states.

“For too long, the government failed to live up to its commitments,” Biden said in a statement. “We vowed to fix that, and because of actions from our administration, now over 1 million public service workers have gotten the relief they are entitled to under the law.”

In total, the administration says it has now canceled $175 billion for about 5 million borrowers using several existing programs. Public Service Loan Forgiveness accounts for the largest share of that relief, while others have had their loans canceled through income-driven payment plans and through a 1994 rule offering relief to students who were cheated by their schools.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program was created in 2007, promising college graduates that the remainder of their federal student loans would be zeroed out after 10 years working in government or nonprofit jobs. But starting in 2017, the vast majority of applicants were rejected because of complicated and little-known eligibility rules.

A 2018 report from the Government Accountability Office found that 99% of applicants were denied, often because they weren’t in the right loan repayment plan or because their payments had temporarily been paused through deferment or forbearance — periods that weren’t counted toward the 10 years of public work.

The GAO faulted the Education Department for failing to make the rules clear.

The program was the subject of legal and political battles, with Democrats in Congress calling on the Trump administration to loosen the rules and uphold the spirit of the program. Betsy DeVos, the education secretary at the time, countered that she was faithfully following the rules passed by Congress.

Declaring that the program was “broken,” the Biden administration in 2021 offered a temporary waiver allowing borrowers to get credit for past periods of deferment or forbearance, among other changes. A year later, the Education Department updated the rules to expand eligibility more permanently.

Since then, waves of borrowers have been approved for cancellation as they reach the 10-year finish line. On Thursday, 60,000 more hit the mark, pushing the total past 1 million. When Biden took office, just 7,000 borrowers had been granted relief over the previous four years.

Republicans in Congress slammed Biden for working to forgive loans rather than make college less expensive.

“The Biden-Harris administration is circumventing Congress to shoehorn graduate degree holders and high-income borrowers into a program they were never eligible for and forcing hardworking Americans to pay for it in the process,” said Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee.

In all, the program has now erased $74 billion in loans for public workers.

“I want to send a message to college students across America that pursuing a career in public service is not only a noble calling but a reliable pathway to becoming debt-free within a decade,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement.

The milestone was applauded by supporters of student loan cancellation, including the nonprofit Young Invincibles.

“This program is essential to bring new workers into the important roles of public service and reward their contributions,” said Kristin McGuire, the group's executive director. “After years of very little forgiveness through PSLF, one million borrowers free from debt is a massive achievement.”

After facing legal challenges to Biden's own student loan plans, his administration has increasingly shifted attention to the record sums of loan cancellation granted through existing programs.

Biden campaigned on a promise of widespread student loan cancellation, but last year the Supreme Court blocked his proposal to cancel up to $20,000 for 40 million Americans. Biden ordered his Education Department to try again using a different legal justification, but a judge in Missouri temporarily halted the plan after several Republican states challenged it.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

FILE - President Joe Biden speaks about student loan debt, April 8, 2024, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)