Gotham FC drawn into Group A for inaugural CONCACAF W Champions Cup

Thursday night saw NJ/NY Gotham FC learn their fate for the group stage of this season's inaugural CONCACAF W Champions Cup. The Bats qualified for the tournament by winning last season's NWSL Championship.

They were one of two top seeds in Pot A alongside fellow NWSL team San Diego Wave FC who qualified by winning the 2023 NWSL Shield. The final NWSL team in the competition, Portland Thorns FC, was in Pot B and qualified by finishing second in the 2023 NWSL regular season standings.

Gotham was drawn into Group A with four other teams. Their competition includes two teams from Mexico, Tigres UANL Femenil, who qualified by winning the 2023 Liga MX Femenil Apertura championship, and C.F. Monterrey Femenil, who won the 2024 Liga MX Femenil Clausura championship. They'll be joined by Costa Rican champion Liga Deportiva Alajuelense and Jamaican champion Frazsiers Whip Women F.C. to round out the group.

As part of the group stage, Gotham FC will play two games at home and two away with five matchdays scheduled to occur every two weeks from the end of August to the middle of October. Each team will have one of the five matchdays off depending on how the games are scheduled.

Gotham FC will participate in the CONCACAF W Champions Cup

Looking at Goitham's schedule, their most likely matchday off could be matchday one scheduled for August 20-22. They play an exhibition match on Monday, August 19 at home against WSL Champions Chelsea, and then their second matchup of the season against Portland on Saturday, August 24. The full match schedule will be released at a later date.

The top two teams from Group A and Group B will move on to the knockout stage which will see the semifinals, third-place playoff, and final played at a centralized location at the end of May 2025. These games will utilize a single-game knockout format. The winner will qualify for the future FIFA Women's Club World Cup which could launch as soon as 2026.

It will be interesting to see how the increased amount of games will play out this season. Last season, Gotham played 31 games. Between the Champions Cup, the season-opening Challenge Cup, and the new NWSL x LIGA MX Femenil Summer Cup, this season's total could rise to 40 games. Obviously, the NJ/NY side had planned for such an increase in games played given their offseason roster moves, seemingly doubling and sometimes tripling up at every position. This was done to have the depth needed not to just play in this increased amount of games but to win as many of these additional competitions as possible.

Of all these new competitions, the Champions Cup will most likely be the one Gotham takes the most seriously. There's no guarantee that the Summer Cup will be back next season. Moreover, the Champions Cup can provide a route to qualify for the future Women's Club World Cup where the Bats can play teams like Chelsea F.C. Women, FC Barcelona Femení, and Olympique Lyonnais Féminin in a somewhat competitive environment.

Gotham FC wants to be an internationally renowned club that is considered one of the best in the world. They've already taken steps towards that goal by winning the 2023 NWSL Championship. Plus, they have attracted some of the best domestic talent in Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Rose Lavelle, and Emily Sonnett. Fans cannot forget the international talent like Ann-Katrin Berger and Esther González. This Champions Cup competition is just another step in this journey to the top for Gotham.