A closed WSL is not the answer

WPLL proposals to remove relegation from the WSL could have huge ramifications for the future of women's football in England

Manchester United fans at Old Trafford. Credit: Nina Farooqi

It had been coming. Ever since the WSL and Championship were separated from the Football Association and placed into the hands of the new independent Women’s Professional Leagues Limited there were murmurs of plans to move the WSL to a closed league. It has been part of the WPLL’s wider exploration of the future of the women’s football pyramid and the WSL, but many fans presumed the idea would come and go once the reality of those proposals were set against the wider English football ecosystem.

On Sunday night, The Guardian reported that clubs would be voting on whether to scrap relegation from the WSL at the end of the season.

The plans would see relegation postponed from the 2026-27 season until at least 2030, but it’s not a given that relegation would then be re-instated.

Under these proposals, the WSL and Championship (soon to be rebranded back to WSL2) would expand to 16 teams, as a club would be added to the top tier every season. It is also to be decided how clubs would be promoted between the leagues, with a playoff system being considered.

It is not surprising the WPLL is considering this model given the seemingly simple success of the NWSL, MLS and it’s franchise system.