WSL, Championship takeover set for 2024/25 season | OneFootball

Teams at both the first and second tier of women’s football in England have voted to move from FA ownership to a new structure that would see each club as a shareholder in the league setup. This means changes for the WSL and the Championship in England.

But who is NewCo and what could the move mean for the future of English football?

What will the new structure look like?

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The move would see the FA relinquish control of the Women’s Super League and the Women’s Championship. The transition will occur at the beginning of the 2024/25 season. All 24 clubs voted unanimously for the creation of a new, independent governing body. Each club will act as a shareholder, similar to the Premier League’s 20-club governance model. The changes will offer clubs a greater say in their future and decisions surrounding the league.

How has the decision been made?

The process began in 2018 when the FA announced they had no intention to run the two leagues long-term. Initially, the governing body welcomed proposals from organisations, including the Premier League before deciding on the creation of a new independent group.

At the time, the FA created a working group of ten chief executives from the two leagues. The commission was led by Arsenal’s Vinai Venkatesham. The project will be led by former Nike director Nikki Doucet. As part of her role, Doucet spoke to players in the WSL and Championship alongside leading discussions with the Professional Footballers Association. Doucet will now oversee the transition to the new structure after being named the new organisation’s chief executive.

Speaking on the new structure, Doucet said, “This is an incredibly exciting time for women’s football. Having already worked with the clubs and the FA for a number of months, I’ve been incredibly encouraged by the collective desire and shared ambition to make our leagues the most distinctive, competitive and entertaining women’s club competitions in the world.

“It’s a great privilege to help lead the next phase of this inspirational journey, which has been started by the FA through passion, investment and a steadfast commitment to the evolution of women’s football.”

Supporters of WSL and Championship

Several high-profile voices from within the women’s game have spoken out in support of the plans. Director of Women’s Football for the FA, Baroness Sue Campbell, said, “The women’s professional game is in the strongest place that it has ever been thanks to the hard work of everybody involved in its development so far. But we firmly believe that the NewCo will take it to another level entirely. Each of our 24 clubs and the league itself wants the WSL and Championship to be setting the standards for women’s football around the world, and this venture into a new governing body is the next step in us achieving that ambition.”

England star Beth Mead has also voiced her support for the move. “We want the game to move to a new level and keep pushing it forward. I think although the FA has done an amazing job over so many years, it was time to let go of those stabilisers and let somebody else take over. Hopefully in the long run that can help us push the game and the leagues to the next level and ultimately that’s what we want to keep doing. I think the sky’s the limit and we have to keep pushing it there.”

Concerns

Despite the support, many people in and around the game have concerns surrounding the takeover. A major concern for many surrounds the lack of a central governing body. There is no doubt that the women’s game has come a long way, particularly since last summer’s home Euros. However many worry that the move may have come too soon in the development of the professional game. There are further fears that the transition may see the WSL benefit significantly more than the Championship, widening the gap between the two leagues.

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