Benfica vs. Austria Wien Women's Champions League Match Postponed Due to Storm Warning

Storm Charles forced the postponement of Austria Wien’s Women’s Champions League fixture against Benfica on Tuesday, leaving the Austrian club’s traveling squad stranded at Lisbon’s airport after a government weather warning triggered an emergency cancellation by UEFA.

The fourth-round group stage match was originally scheduled for Wednesday night at the 68,431-capacity Estádio da Luz, LAOLA1 reported. Following an official weather alert issued by the Portuguese government, European football’s governing body postponed the fixture to Thursday at 21:00 local time (UTC+0).

Austria Wien’s players had already landed in the Portuguese capital when news of the cancellation reached them at the terminal, according to the club’s social media channels.

Because the European fixture moves to Thursday, Austria Wien’s upcoming domestic league match against Salzburg on Saturday must also be postponed, with officials actively searching for an alternative date.

Austria Wien travels to Portugal searching for their first-ever group stage win in the competition. The Austrian double-champion sits in 15th place in the league phase with two points following a 1–0 defeat to Chelsea, a 1–1 draw against Inter Milan, and a 4–1 loss to Juventus. Benfica holds 12th place—the final qualification spot—with three points after beating Juventus 2–1 alongside losses to Bayern Munich and Arsenal. Das war ein Ausrufezeichen, alleine das zeigt, welches Kaliber auf uns wartet, betonte Austria-Trainer Stefan Kenesei, noting that Benfica had also defeated Juventus.

Should that victory succeed in Lisbon, Austria’s double-champion would pass the Portuguese side in the league phase and mix fully in the race for advancement. In the opinion of the squad, Austria is not in the role of favorites at all.

Wenn wir annähernd an die Leistungen von den Spielen gegen Chelsea oder Inter anknüpfen können, dann rechnen wir uns auch in Lissabon was aus, sagte Kenesei. Unlike in the league, his troop as an underdog on the European stage against an opponent auch auf dem Level sehr routinierten Gegner is not condemned to win.

Austria Wien coach Stefan Kenesei faces roster decisions ahead of Thursday’s kickoff. Long-term absentee Louise Schöffel remains sidelined with a thigh injury, but defensive stalwart Katharina Schiechtl returns to boost the backline. Meanwhile, top scorer Modesta Uka remains questionable due to muscular issues after netting seven goals across European qualification and group play this season.

Benfica boasts a squad market value of roughly 1.60 million euros, led by Danish midfielder Caroline Möller and Brazilian forward Nycole Raysla at 150,000 euros apiece, compared to Austria Wien’s squad valuation of approximately 0.85 million euros, according to data cited by Wettbasis. Benfica manager Ivan Baptista typically deploys a 4-2-3-1 formation, while Kenesei relies on a 3-4-3 setup.

Benfica enters the fixture seeking to reverse a difficult home run in European competition. The Portuguese champions are winless in their last seven home matches in the Women’s Champions League, including preliminary rounds, though they reached the quarter-finals in 2024 and stand before their 50th match. Another Austrian club already found success in Portugal this season when St. Pölten eliminated Sporting in a penalty shootout during the qualifying rounds.

Fans unable to attend the match at the Estádio da Luz can watch the broadcast via Disney+ or ORF Sport+, as detailed by FK Austria Wien. Tickets remain available for purchase at the stadium fan shop priced at five euros.

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