The LEN Champions League Women, formerly known as LEN European Cup (from 1987 to 1999), LEN Champions Cup (from 1999 to 2013) and LEN Euroleague Women (2014 to 2022), is the premier competition for women's
water polo
Water polo is a competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the ball into the opposing team's goal. The team with th ...
clubs of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and takes place every year. It is organized by the
Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN) and was created in 1987 as .
History
Created in 1987 as the women's water polo clubs continental competition, contested amongst the national champions of the European countries, it has been played under the following names:
* LEN European Cup (1987–1999)
* LEN Champions Cup (1999–2013)
* LEN Euro League Women (2014–2022)
* LEN Champions League Women (since 2023)
Format
Over the years, different formats have been used in the competition, either
Round-robin or
Knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving strikin ...
or both combined (round-robin at early stages and knockout at final stages).
Since the 2007–08 season, the competition has been played in four stages (qualification round, preliminary round, quarter final round and final four).
Title holders
* 1987–88:
Donk Gouda
* 1988–89:
Donk Gouda
* 1989–90:
Nereus
In Greek mythology, Nereus ( ; ) was the eldest son of Pontus (the Sea) and Gaia ( the Earth), with Pontus himself being a son of Gaia. Nereus and Doris became the parents of 50 daughters (the Nereids) and a son ( Nerites), with whom Nereus ...
* 1990–91:
Donk Gouda
* 1991–92:
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 squ ...
* 1992–93:
Szentes
Szentes is a town in south-eastern Hungary, Csongrád county, near the Tisza river. The town is a cultural and educational center of the region.
Notable people
* Árpád Balázs (born 1937), classical music composer
* János Bácskai 1954. novemb ...
* 1993–94:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 1994–95:
Nereus
In Greek mythology, Nereus ( ; ) was the eldest son of Pontus (the Sea) and Gaia ( the Earth), with Pontus himself being a son of Gaia. Nereus and Doris became the parents of 50 daughters (the Nereids) and a son ( Nerites), with whom Nereus ...
* 1995–96:
Nereus
In Greek mythology, Nereus ( ; ) was the eldest son of Pontus (the Sea) and Gaia ( the Earth), with Pontus himself being a son of Gaia. Nereus and Doris became the parents of 50 daughters (the Nereids) and a son ( Nerites), with whom Nereus ...
* 1996–97:
SKIF Moscow
* 1997–98:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 1998–99:
SKIF Moscow
* 1999–00:
Glyfada
Glyfada ( el, Γλυφάδα, ) is a suburb in South Athens located in the Athens Riviera along the Athens coast. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens' Urban Area. The area stretches from the foot of the Hymettus mountain to the S ...
* 2000–01:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2001–02:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2002–03:
Glyfada
Glyfada ( el, Γλυφάδα, ) is a suburb in South Athens located in the Athens Riviera along the Athens coast. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens' Urban Area. The area stretches from the foot of the Hymettus mountain to the S ...
* 2003–04:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2004–05:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2005–06:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2006–07:
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...
* 2007–08:
Orizzonte Catania
Associazione Sportiva Orizzonte Catania Waterpolo, also known as Ekipe Orizzonte for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional women's water polo club from Catania.
Founded in 1985, Orizzonte has dominated the Italian championship in the ...
* 2008–09:
Vouliagmeni
Vouliagmeni ( el, Βουλιαγμένη, meaning "sunken") is a seaside suburb and former municipality 20 km south of Athens city centre. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, of which ...
* 2009–10:
Vouliagmeni
Vouliagmeni ( el, Βουλιαγμένη, meaning "sunken") is a seaside suburb and former municipality 20 km south of Athens city centre. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, of which ...
* 2010–11:
Astralpool Sabadell
* 2011–12:
Pro Recco
A.S.D. Pro Recco (Official name: Associazione Sportiva Dilettantistica Pro Recco) is an Italian water polo club from Recco, in Liguria. It currently plays in Serie A1.
Pro Recco is the most successful club in men's water polo. In men's domesti ...
* 2012–13:
Astralpool Sabadell
* 2013–14:
Astralpool Sabadell
* 2014–15:
Olympiacos
Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a numbe ...
* 2015–16:
Astralpool Sabadell
* 2016–17:
Kinef Kirishi
Kinef-Surgutneftegaz (russian: КИНЕФ-Сургутнефтегаз) is a Russian professional men's and women's water polo club from Kirishi owned by Kinef and Surgutneftegaz.
The women's club was founded in the 1993–94 season as Fakel. In ...
* 2017–18:
Kinef Kirishi
Kinef-Surgutneftegaz (russian: КИНЕФ-Сургутнефтегаз) is a Russian professional men's and women's water polo club from Kirishi owned by Kinef and Surgutneftegaz.
The women's club was founded in the 1993–94 season as Fakel. In ...
* 2018–19:
Astralpool Sabadell
* 2019–20: ''Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic''
* 2020–21:
Olympiacos
Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a numbe ...
* 2021–22:
Olympiacos
Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a numbe ...
Finals
Source:
LEN
Len or LEN may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Len (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
* Lén, a character from Irish mythology
* Alex Len (born 1993), Ukrainian basketball player
* Mr. Len, American hip hop DJ
* L ...
(from 1987 to 2016).
Titles by club
Titles by nation
References
{{European Club Competitions
Recurring sporting events established in 1987
Women
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...
Women's water polo competitions
Multi-national professional sports leagues