HOW DOES THE FORMAT WORK?
United Women advanced to the ‘Group 1’ final after securing a semi-final victory against PSV, while Hammarby accomplished the same feat following their win over Metalist Kharkiv.
The second round of the qualifying stage has been divided into mini groups, and United is now just one win away from reaching the third round, which will be contested over two legs for a chance to enter the UEFA Women’s Champions League group stages.
In the third qualifying round, there are nine two-legged matches, categorized into the champions path (four matches) and the league path (five matches). The winners of these ties will move on to the league phase, while the losing teams will enter the Europa Cup at the second qualifying round stage.
This means that even if United loses on Saturday, there is still a chance for European football this season through the Europa Cup, which is making its debut this year. However, additional qualifiers will be required to secure a spot in the group stages of that competition.
