Chelsea wins Women's League Cup final for first trophy in quadruple bid

Chelsea’s quadruple bid in women’s soccer is up and running.

A 2-1 win over Manchester City in the Women’s League Cup final on Saturday earned Chelsea its first piece of silverware this season.

Chelsea — still unbeaten in all competitions — leads the Women’s Super League by eight points with six games remaining in its title defense, is in the quarterfinals of the Champions League, and has reached the FA Cup semifinals.

Yui Hasegawa’s unfortunate own-goal in the 77th minute clinched the win for Chelsea, which took the lead after eight minutes through Mayra Ramirez. It was also the Colombia striker who delivered the right-wing cross that Hasegawa sliced into her own net.

Hasegawa, the Japan midfielder, was in tears after the match and was consoled by her teammates.

Aoba Fujino equalized for City with a brilliant strike from the edge of the area in the 64th.

Chelsea had lost the previous three League Cup finals.

“It’s been doing my head in for a long time,” said Chelsea captain Millie Bright, who played a key role in resisting many City attacks in the second half.

“We have a mentality to never give in," Bright added. "It’s something Chelsea has in its DNA.”

It was the first of four games between Chelsea and City in a 12-day span. They also meet in the two-legged Champions League quarterfinals — the first leg is on Wednesday — with a Women’s Super League match in between.

“My players know exactly the rules. I told them that it’s important to celebrate for sure, but we have a game against City on Wednesday and we’ll need to be ready because again we expect a tough game," said Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor, who collected her first trophy since joining the club in last year's offseason.

“They can just go out until 9 o'clock,” she said about her players' celebrations. "9:30, in bed.”

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Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, Millie Bright and Nathalie Bjorn celebrate following the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea players celebrate following the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea players celebrate the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Nathalie Bjorn and Millie Bright lift the trophy following the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez scores her side's first goal during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez scores her side's first goal during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Manchester City's Kerstin Casparij (left) and Chelsea's Sandy Baltimore battle for the ball during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Lucy Bronze (left) and Manchester City's Leila Ouahabi collide during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Catarina Macario and Manchester City's Laia Aleixandri battle for the ball during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Mike Egerton /PA via AP)

Manchester City's Aoba Fujino scores her side's first goal during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea players celebrate their side's second goal of the game, an own-goal scored by Manchester City's Yui Hasegawa, during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez (left) celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with team-mate Catarina Macario during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez (left) celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with team-mate Sjoeke Nusken during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez (left) celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with team-mate Sjoeke Nusken, during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Despite the growing attention on women's soccer globally, the vast majority of players and teams still struggle for resources and investment.

FIFA on Monday released its annual report on the women's game, highlighting the inequities across the sport.

Soccer's world governing body expanded the fourth edition's scope from 34 leagues to 86 leagues and some 669 teams, providing a more accurate picture of the state of the game. It analyzed data in six areas: sporting, governance, financial landscape, fan engagement, data and digital, and player-related matters.

The report separated the leagues into three tiers, based on various criteria including whether the leagues had senior level competitions, the number of players that were on a 2023 Women's World Cup roster or a premier tournament like the Women's Euros, and the member association's budget for women's soccer.

The report found that the average gross salary across all tiers was $10,900, but that number was skewed by 16 clubs in the top tier that paid players an average of more than $50,000. The average salary for top-tier teams was $24,030 globally — less than a living wage in many places.

Women's soccer is not yet profitable, with top-tier leagues generating an average of $4.4 million in revenue but spending an average of $7.6 million. The lowest tier averaged $76,000 in revenue, with $182,000 in expenses. FIFA did not identify the individual clubs within each each tier.

Only 22% of the clubs surveyed had women's coaches, the report said.

The majority of top-tier leagues had domestic broadcast deals (91%) compared to 32% in the bottom tier. Just 42% of the third-tier teams have a title sponsor, compared to 69% at the top.

The report comes as FIFA introduced two more international club tournaments, the 2026 Women's Champions Cup and the 2028 Women's Club World Cup.

The organization announced earlier this month that 19 teams will take part in the first-ever Women's Club World Cup in January-February 2028.

The new Women's Champions Cup will include the six continental club champions and will be played in January next year.

It is hoped that the competitions spur more investment by keeping attention on the players even when it's not a Women's World Cup year.

“This month FIFA announced the timelines and formats for two new, landmark, global FIFA women’s club competitions,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement Monday. “As we embark on the development of these tournaments, it is equally important that we offer insights and resources to women’s football stakeholders so that together we can build on the solid foundations already in place. FIFA will utilize the findings to build tailor-made programs that will support member associations to continue to professionalize women’s football — this is critical as we embark on a new era for women’s club football on the global stage.”

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Chelsea's Mayra Ramirez (left) celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with team-mate Catarina Macario during the English women's League Cup soccer final match between Chelsea and Manchester City, at Pride Park Stadium, Derby, England, Saturday March 15, 2025. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)

Chelsea's Catarina Macario in action with Crystal Palace's Molly-Mae Sharpe, left, and My Cato during the Women's FA Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Chelsea and Crystal Palace at Kingsmeadow, London, Sunday March 9, 2025. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

Liverpool's Olivia Smith, second left, celebrates with her team mates after scoring her sides third goal from the penalty spot during their English Women's Super League match at Anfield, Liverpool, England, Friday, March 14, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)