Second-half goals by Ballon d’Or winners Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas propelled Barcelona to defend their Women’s Champions League title and secure their first-ever quadruple with a 2-0 win over Lyon in Spain.

Bonmati, who was named the best women’s footballer in the world last year, broke the deadlock in the 63rd minute. Putellas, donning the captain’s armband after being subbed in during stoppage time, sealed the victory, ensuring Barcelona’s name would be engraved on the trophy for the third time in their history.

This triumph marked the first time Barcelona had beaten the French champions in five encounters. They achieved this milestone in front of a record-breaking crowd of 50,827 at Bilbao’s San Mames Stadium for a Women’s Champions League final. The lineup featured England midfielder Keira Walsh and an in-form Lucy Bronze.

Emma Hayes had hoped to end her 12-year tenure at Chelsea with a victory in this elusive final before transitioning to her new role as the manager of the United States. However, Chelsea fell short in their second Champions League final appearance, and it was Hayes’ likely successor, Sonia Bompastor, whose Lyon team could not overcome Chelsea’s semifinal conquerors for what would have been their ninth title.

Lyon nearly took an early lead when Bronze’s attempt to clear a Lyon header skimmed her own crossbar. Barcelona also came close before halftime when Christiane Endler blocked Patricia Guijarro’s shot from a tight angle, with the rebound dangerously deflecting off a teammate before Selma Bacha cleared it off the line.

Lyon had another chance to score when captain Wendie Renard failed to capitalize on Lindsey Horan’s clever flick after the restart. However, Bonmati finally gave Barcelona the lead in the 63rd minute with a looping shot that deflected off Vanessa Gilles into the top right corner.

Putellas, who had ruptured her ACL two years ago and missed Euro 2022, was part of the Spain squad that won the World Cup last summer. She recently signed a new two-year contract with Barcelona. The crowd gave her a rousing ovation when she entered the pitch in the third minute of stoppage time, which turned into a roar three minutes later when she scored to complete the victory.