Brazil's Corinthians to face England's Arsenal in the inaugural Women’s Champions Cup final

LONDON (AP) — Alessia Russo scored a pair of second-half goals in a 10-minute span to cap a 6-0 victory for Arsenal over Moroccan club ASFAR on Wednesday for a spot in the final of the first Women's Champions Cup.

Arsenal will face Brazilian club Corinthians on Sunday in the title match of the intercontinental championship for club teams. Corinthians defeated Gotham FC 1-0 in Wednesday's earlier match at Gtech Community Stadium.

Stina Blackstenius' header went over the goal line in the eighth minute before it was kicked out by a defender, followed closely by Frida Maanum's goal in the 12th to give Arsenal an early 2-0 lead.

Mariona Caldentey converted a penalty in the 22nd and Olivia Smith's late blast from the top of the box made it 4-0 at the break.

Russo came on as a substitute in the 61st minute and scored five minutes later before adding a second in the 76th minute. The African champions were unable to mount much of a challenge against Arsenal, which qualified for the tournament as winners of the Women's Champions League.

In the earlier match, 40-year-old Gabi Zanotti stopped a cross on her chest, then shot the dropping ball with her left boot to the right of Gotham goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger, who got her hands to it but couldn’t stop it from slipping through in the 82nd minute.

National Women's Soccer League club Gotham, which qualified for the inaugural FIFA event by winning the first CONCACAF Champions Cup, had pushed hard for the opener in the second half.

But Corinthians, the Copa Libertadores champion, defended smartly and the Brazilian team made it count with the 38-year-old Tamires producing the cross for the oldest player on the field to score the goal that mattered.

Gotham made a desperate push for a late equalizer with Berger going up for a free kick deep in stoppage time, when one of the Corinthians backroom staff was sent off, presumably for calling too frenetically for the full-time whistle. Jaedyn Shaw sent the free kick to the right of the post in the last action of the game.

It was Gotham's first competitive match since winning the NWSL championship as the eighth seed in November. Team captain Rose Lavelle went off injured in stoppage time.

Both the final and third-place match are to be played Sunday at Arsenal’s stadium, with $2.3 million going to the winner of the competition. The runner-up takes home $1 million.

The six-team Champions Cup was created as an event for club teams. It builds on a growing number of regional club competitions, led by the success of the UEFA Women’s Champions League.

Two continental champions were eliminated in earlier rounds: Auckland United from Oceania and Wuhan Chegu Jiangda from Asia.

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Arsenal's Alessia Russo, right, challenges for the ball with Asfar's Siham Boukhami during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Arsenal and Asfar in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Arsenal's Alessia Russo, right, celebrates after scoring her side's fifth goal during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Arsenal and Asfar in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Corinthian's Gabi Zanotti, right, celebrates with teammates after the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Gotham's Jaedyn Shaw challenges Corinthian's Gi Fernandes during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Gotham's Jaedyn Shaw misses a chance during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Corinthian's Gabi Zanotti, right, celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Corinthian's Gabi Zanotti, left, celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Corinthian's Gabi Zanotti, left, celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Women's Champions Cup semifinal soccer match between Gotham FC and Corinthians in London, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan has resigned after six seasons, opting to step aside rather than work with a new front office, the team announced Tuesday.

President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf made it clear after firing executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley near the end of the season that he wanted Donovan to remain on the job. He said anyone who wanted to bring in a new coach was “probably not the right candidate for us.”

Now, it looks like whoever the Bulls hire to run their organization will get that opportunity.

“While we clearly wanted Billy to return as our head coach, we had open dialogue about the importance of respecting the process of bringing in new basketball operations leadership," Reinsdorf said in a news release. “Together, we mutually agreed that giving that person the freedom to shape the organization was the best approach for everyone involved.”

The 60-year-old Donovan consistently has said he still has a passion for coaching. The decision to leave the Bulls was made “after a series of thoughtful and extensive discussions with ownership regarding the future of the organization,” Donovan said in the team release announcing the move.

“I believe it is in the best interest of the Bulls, to allow the new leader to build out the staff as they see fit,” he said.

Donovan was arguably the top candidate on the market when the Bulls hired him in September 2020, a few months after Karnisovas and Eversley got their jobs.

Chicago’s lone playoff appearance since all three were hired came during the 2021-22 season, when it finished sixth in the Eastern Conference at 46-36 and got knocked out by Milwaukee in the first round. The Bulls lost in the play-in tournament the next three years.

Donovan got a contract extension last offseason. Reinsdorf said after firing Karnisovas and Eversley that the problem was the roster construction — not the coach.

Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, Michael's father, praised Donovan for the “class and genuine care” that he brought to the organization.

“We wanted Billy to continue as our head coach — that was never in question,” Jerry Reinsdorf said. “But through honest conversations, we all agreed that giving our new head of basketball operations the right to build out his staff was the most important thing for the future of this franchise. That is the kind of person Billy is — he put the Bulls first.”

Karnisovas’ inability to land a franchise cornerstone player and refusal to give the Bulls a better shot at the No. 1 pick by rebuilding were glaring. He finally changed course before this year’s trade deadline, dealing Nikola Vucevic to Boston, Kevin Huerter to Detroit, Coby White to Charlotte and Chicago product Ayo Dosunmu to Minnesota. The Bulls loaded up on second-round draft picks and did not get any first-rounders in return.

One of the players Chicago got in return was Jaden Ivey from Detroit. Chicago waived him following anti-LGBTQ+ comments about religion he made in videos posted on his Instagram account.

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Chicago Bulls' Collin Sexton talks with Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan during a time out in an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Albert Pena)

Chicago Bulls Head Coach Billy Donovan gives directions during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Orlando Magic in Chicago, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, left, talks with guard Mac McClung (5) during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Orlando Magic in Chicago, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan shouts instructions during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)