QB weekly: 9. - 15. 3. 2026

Popp in, Kellermann in: Dortmund launch ambitious new era

Borussia Dortmund is one of the giants of the Bundesliga and German football. In women’s football, however, the story is different — the club currently competes in the third tier. Founded only in 2020, Dortmund’s women’s team is still young, but the club clearly has big ambitions.

Those ambitions are reflected in the arrival of Ralf Kellermann as sporting director. Kellermann was the architect behind Wolfsburg’s rise into one of Europe’s dominant teams, leading the club to two UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.

The squad will also receive a major boost next season with the arrival of Alexandra Popp. The former Germany captain will move from Wolfsburg, where she has played since 2012 and was part of the club’s most successful era. Her task will be clear: help guide Dortmund to promotion to the second division.

So far, BVB have been climbing steadily, moving up a league almost every season. The ultimate goal, however, remains clear — reaching the Frauen-Bundesliga.

Alanna Kennedy just loves to score

The Matildas are through to the semi-finals of the home Asian Cup after a 2:1 victory over North Korea. More importantly, the result also secured their place at the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

Australia’s goals came from Alanna Kennedy and Sam Kerr. Kennedy’s strike was her fifth of the tournament, placing her among the competition’s top scorers — an impressive feat considering the fact that she is a centre-back.

Next up for the Matildas are the defending champions from China. Should they progress, they will face either Japan or South Korea in the final.

NWSL expansion sides suffer defeats in season debuts

The 2026 NWSL season kicked off in the United States on Saturday, March 14, with two expansion teams making their league debuts — Boston Legacy and Denver Summit. Neither side, however, celebrated a first victory, and both finished their matches with ten players.

Denver opened their campaign away at Bay FC, but their task became much harder in the 27th minute when former Louisville player Janine Sonis was shown a red card.

Boston, meanwhile, had the advantage of playing at home but faced defending champions Gotham FC in their season opener. Gotham began their title defence with a win thanks to a goal from Esther González.

Russo makes 100th appearance in red and white

“Hopefully hundreds more,” Alessia Russo said after celebrating her 100th appearance for Arsenal with a victory over London City Lionesses, in a match where she also registered an assist.

Russo joined the Gunners as a free agent from Manchester United in 2023 and quickly became a key player and a fan favourite. Last season’s WSL top scorer also lifted the UEFA Women’s Champions League trophy with Arsenal — a competition where she continues to thrive and currently leads the scoring charts.

As Lessi herself put it: she loves playing for Arsenal, and Arsenal loves her back.

Musovic returns to action after maternity leave

Former Chelsea goalkeeper and Sweden international Zecira Musovic moved from England to her native Sweden while pregnant, agreeing a deal with Damallsvenskan's Malmö FF. After giving birth to her daughter Zarah in August, she began her journey back to the top level of football.

The Swedish league season only begins this week, but the domestic cup is already underway — and it was there that Musovic made her first appearance since becoming a mother. Unfortunately, the return did not go as she might have hoped. Malmö fell to a 3–1 defeat against Kristianstad, complicating their chances of progressing to the next stage.

League Cup joy, injury blow: Bittersweet return for Nathalie Björn

The Women’s League Cup has its winners. Just like last season, the trophy is heading to Chelsea, who secured a 2–0 victory over Manchester United despite missing Ellie Carpenter and Sam Kerr, both away at the Asian Cup.

The win, however, was slightly overshadowed by the misfortune of Swedish centre-back Nathalie Björn. Making her first appearance since December after recovering from a thigh injury, Björn’s return lasted just four minutes before she was forced off the pitch with another injury.