After the shocking news that on Friday, the Women’s Professional Leagues Ltd (WPLL) were in discussion with all twenty-three clubs in the Barclays Women’s Super League (WSL) and the Championship to discuss issues including the removal of relegation between the two divisions.
Thoroughly scouring social media, I did not see anyone in favour of this move citing that free movement between divisions should be based on performance on the pitch only. You can read my views here.
Matt Hughes and Suzy Wrack continue to be on top of this story, exclusively sharing this evening that “A radical plan to scrap relegation from the Women’s Super League as part of a major expansion of the professional game is to be voted on by clubs at the end of the season.”
Adding, “Promotion from the Championship would continue in an attempt to grow the size and strength of the top flight, with one extra club to be admitted to the WSL each season over the next four years. Relegation could then be reinstated in the 2030-31 campaign, although that is not guaranteed.”
Reading this, the thought of this coming in sickens and angers me.
I have always understood that women’s football will soon change to become a carbon copy of the men’s game on and off the pitch but I naively hoped that the heart, soul and inclusivity of the women’s game might be strong enough to ward off the suits who put money over everything else.
I have tried to be objective and started to write an argument in favour of this move, but I couldn’t find one unless you are an owner of a wealthy Premier League backed club.
The article said, “With an eye on future expansion the WPLL has had informal discussions with Premier League clubs whose women’s teams are outside the top two divisions, including Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth and Brentford, to establish their level of commitment.”
Of course they did. Brentford, of the fifth tier of women’s football, are being given more input than many clubs who are mainstays of the third and even fourth tier. It’s laughable.
I had to chuckle to myself when I read, “Under the leadership of Doucet, the WPLL is determined to achieve that and is committed to an expansion of the entire pyramid.” Based on the actions that we’ve seen, the only commitment that the WPLL have for expansion is the introduction of Professional Game Academies and Reserve teams into the pyramid. A move that benefits the elite and not the wider game.
It’s clear that grassroots clubs, the foundation of the pyramid, are being ignored. This is classic trickle-down economics—the rich get richer while the gap between those at the table and those locked out continues to widen.
I wondered if there is a world where hedge funds or philanthropists want to buy smaller FA Women’s National League clubs unattached to the Premier League in order to climb to the WSL but they wouldn’t even be able to do this if the WPLL have their way.
And what of the vote? This smacks of when MPs vote on their own pay rises. Why wouldn’t clubs support a move that guarantees their survival at the expense of fairness?
If this is to become reality, there will need to be a two-thirds majority of member clubs to vote in favour. The meeting and vote are likely to be held at the end of April or early May. The previous reports advised that whatever the outcome, it will be known sooner rather than later.
The article went on to say that, “for alterations to be made to the relegation/promotion structure, at least eight clubs must vote in favour in each division, a balloting structure that gives a huge amount of influence to a handful of Championship clubs. If the clubs agree to the changes proposed by the WPLL they will then be passed to the FA board for ratification, although that will be a formality.”
So, in essence, this decision lies in the hands of clubs who stand to benefit the most from it. The future of women’s football as a competitive, merit-based sport is being placed at risk.
Tonight, I feel deflated. I’m going to bed.
