Top players and iconic moments: How WSL has ‘changed face of game’
► A decade after its inception, England’s domestic league has become the world’s best and a hotbed of international talent
When England face Canada at St George’s Park this evening, a staggering 24 from a squad of 26 will do so as Women’s Super League players. On the 10th anniversary of the WSL, that is a world away from how things used to be. At the final for Euro 2009, when England met Germany, more than half of Hope Powell’s starting XI were either based in the United States or about to sign for a US club.
The creation of the WSL has changed all that; the days of the country’s brightest talents being forced to cross the pond to play professional football are long gone, and England’s domestic competition has become the envy of almost every women’s sport league on the planet.
With talent such as the division’s top scorer, Vivianne Miedema, wowing a league-record crowd of 38,262 fans at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Australia’s Sam Kerr cartwheeling in celebration after scoring in the League Cup final, or Scotland winger Caroline Weir’s chip to settle the Manchester derby in style this term, the WSL era has delivered a flood of iconic moments to define a new era on the pitch.
Off the field, too, with the progression from semi-professional status for the eight founding teams in 2011, to 12 fully-professional clubs packed with international players poised for exposure on the BBC and Sky Sports’ flagship channels next season as part of a £7million deal, the WSL has “changed the face of the sport”, according to one of the finest players to grace the game.
England’s record goalscorer, Kelly Smith, was one of those who moved to the US at the turn of the millennium because full-time professional football was not an option in England then. “Something magical is happening within women’s football in this country,” she tells The Daily Telegraph. “When I first started playing, most players had full-time jobs and were training two evenings a week, and it’s come full circle now, it’s been magnificent growth. [The WSL] has revitalised the game.
“I couldn’t stay here because I couldn’t fulfil my potential, but now home-grown players, I see them staying because this league is now the best league in the world and, if it’s not now, it will be in the next few years.
“And England players who have gone to America to study, they’ve all come back to England now, because they sense and smell that something is brewing and they want to be a part of it.”
As well as home-grown talent, the league has attracted some of the biggest overseas names. South Korea magician Ji so-yun’s move to Chelsea in 2014 was a pivotal moment in foreign transfer deals, Manchester City capturing US World Cup winner Carli Lloyd on a short-term deal in 2017 upped the stakes, while last year’s world record transfer of Denmark captain Pernille Harder to Chelsea was only topped by Alex Morgan’s loan to Tottenham last year.
Top players have brought wonder goals to savour. From Smith’s 25-yard lob for Arsenal against Doncaster Rovers Belles in October 2016, to Beth England’s stunner at Stamford Bridge on the opening day of the 2019-20 campaign. The depth of talent has grown alongside greater coaching and improved sports-science methods.
The rapid professionalisation of the division has not come without significant collateral. Losing Doncaster Belles from the top tier, one of the game’s most iconic clubs, as well as talent factory Sunderland, Notts County and Yeovil Town all dropping down the pyramid because of financial pressures, upset the women’s football faithful.
But as the WSL’S commercial model grows – Manchester United and Manchester City investing in the game, and a major three-year title sponsorship from Barclays thought to be worth more than £10million – even the most ardent of traditionalists might struggle to deny the impact of such investment.
Now Kelly
Simmons, the Football’s Association’s director of the women’s professional game, believes the sport can be self-sustainable commercially within the next 10 years. “It should be a source of pride of where we have got to and for everybody who has made it happen,” she said. “Since the Women’s World Cup particularly, the development of the WSL has absolutely turbo-charged.” Asked what the league might look like in 10 years, Simmons says: “I think [we will see] big audiences and big attendances, but I think the big change for me will be that the women’s game should be able to generate enough revenue in 10 years to stand on its own two feet. “At the moment it’s growing revenue. But it’s not yet sustainable. It can’t survive without money made through men’s football.”
It is unlikely that the WSL will still be run by the FA in 10 years’ time, with the governing body open about the fact it does not see itself as the long-term gatekeeper of the game. Multiple expressions of interest from private equity firms were understood to have been lodged last year, and consultations remain ongoing. A Premier League takeover is still on the table for discussion, but league officials appear to be in no immediate hurry to pass the baton.
An increase in men’s Premier League brands dominating the division is likely to grow. Of the 12 current WSL sides, nine are affiliated to men’s Premier League outfits, with three – Birmingham City, Bristol City and Reading – linked to men’s Championship clubs. Leicester City are poised to enter the top tier next term. Meanwhile, lower-league women’s outfits backed by men’s top-flight owners have also expressed their desire to turn professional. That is a trend epitomised by the fact that, in the first Women’s FA Cup final of the 21st century, Croydon beat the Belles, but the competition has been dominated by Arsenal, Chelsea and City since.
The league will also soon have upgrades in refereeing standards and its broadcast media facilities at grounds on match days.
Liverpool winger Rinsola Babajide, who was called up to a first senior England training camp last September, posted a screenshot of racist abuse she received via Instagram, describing how she had become “conditioned” to football’s racism problem. She is the latest high-profile women’s player to be targeted.
Speaking ahead of England’s friendly against Canada this evening, Williamson suggested Hege Riise’s squad would be prepared to take a stance. “Unfortunately members of the team and the wider squad have experienced abuse,” Williamson
said. “They all stand together in terms of how unacceptable it is and, 100 per cent, I think a lot of the team would join collective action if that was deemed to be the most effective, because something needs to change.
“If that’s the best way to do it, then any collective action, whether that be come off [social media], or take the same action on the platforms, I’m sure a lot of the girls will commit. Absolutely nothing is being done, and it’s unacceptable.”
Riise will select an 18-player squad next month for this summer’s Tokyo Olympics.