Williamson handball hands Paris FC a draw with Arsenal in Women’s Champions League

Leah Williamson’s handling error allowed Paris FC to equalise as Maeline Mendy converted a penalty to deny Arsenal victory in a 2-2 UEFA Women’s Champions League match at the Stade Jean-Bouin on 30 September 2026.

Arsenal had taken a two-goal lead through Alessia Russo and Georgia Stanway but Clara Mateo had halved the margin before the late incident that produced the spot-kick; the result prolonged a difficult start to the season for the Gunners, who have five points from their opening four league games. There were two changes to the Arsenal side from their recent 1-0 defeat: Misa Rodríguez started in goal ahead of Anneke Borbe, and Lotte Wubben-Moy came in for Steph Catley, whom Slegers said has had some back pain.

Arsenal dominated possession early but clear chances were scarce and Paris FC had the more promising openings in the first half-hour. The opening goal arrived when Stanway prodded the ball toward Russo; the England forward took several touches to create space before firing a low effort into the net.

Five minutes after the interval Arsenal doubled their lead through Stanway, who flicked Emily Fox’s cross a little with her chest and then lashed a volley in from close range to make it 2-0. The goal followed sustained probing from Arsenal that had forced Paris to abandon their low block and offer more space.

Paris recovered midway through the half when a defensive mix-up between Wubben-Moy and Williamson allowed Evelyne Viens to slip the ball wide to Clara Mateo, who raced clear, rounded Rodríguez and slotted into an empty net to make it 2-1. The goal set up a tense finish at the Stade Jean-Bouin.

The equaliser came from a late, consequential sequence: Rodríguez collected the ball for a goal-kick, rolled it onto the pitch and then passed it to Williamson, who stopped the ball with her hand as the referee blew the whistle and awarded a penalty, ruling Rodríguez had taken the goal-kick. VAR did not intervene and Mendy drove her spot-kick into the bottom corner to complete the comeback.

Arsenal leave Paris with a draw that keeps them short of points in the domestic title race; they sit five points from a possible 12 at the start of the season and remain seven points behind league leaders Manchester City, whom they face in a must-win league game on Sunday.