Betrayal of everything English football stands for if WSL becomes closed shop

Telegraph

28-02-2025

Removing relegation from the Women's Super League would be a betrayal of everything English football stands for.
The game has been built on jeopardy and competition. The idea is that, in theory, everyone has an equal chance of success, of promotion and relegation.
Of course the reality is that it will always be clubs with the biggest purse strings that are likely to prosper. But the finances in the women's game are still way off what is being paid by clubs in the Premier League.
Chelsea broke the record transfer fee for a women's player when they signed Naomi Girma for £890,000. There are clubs in the WSL who will say they cannot compete with that, but will happily spend 10 times that amount on a player for their men's team.
News that the Women's Professional League Limited (WPLL), which took over the running of the WSL and Championship from the Football Association in the summer, is considering closing off the two leagues, is concerning.
Most supporters of the game do not want it. Think back to the outrage caused by the proposal of a 'Super League' in men's football in 2021. English fans do not like their game being messed with.
The proposal is being discussed at a shareholder meeting with the 23 clubs in the top two divisions today. No decision will be made but the WPLL is understood to be canvassing the opinions of clubs in order to see whether it is a viable option for them to pursue.
Three hours of the five-hour meeting have been set aside to discuss what is being called 'Project Pyramid'.
One of the suggestions is that promotion from the Championship to the WSL would be maintained without relegation from the top tier, meaning that division could continue to grow each season. There would also be no relegation from the Championship.
No relegation, no ambition
There will be some figures at that meeting who are in favour of the proposal. Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is understood not to have been present but is thought to be in favour of the WSL becoming a closed league.
His argument, and that of some at the WPLL, is that removing the threat of relegation would encourage club owners to invest. But what if it has the opposite effect?
What if removing relegation merely allows clubs to take it easy? How many clubs realistically believe they can break into the top three and how many of them are willing to spend the money to do it?
The threat of relegation has arguably been the biggest factor for several clubs investing more money in the past few years.
It is the same situation in the Championship. While there are several clubs battling for promotion to the WSL this season, there are a number of teams who actively do not want to get promoted because of the costs involved.
There is a clear split in the second tier between those who are spending heavily to try to move up a division and those who are content with staying where they are. That will not change if you close off the league. It may even widen the gap that already exists.
The issue Championship clubs have is that they are being asked to invest more money with no assurances over when they will get any of it back.
All options considered
There are also bigger problems further down the pyramid. The one up, one down approach has left several clubs stuck in the wrong divisions for too long.
Bournemouth were unbeaten in the Women's Premier League South-West Division One last season, but missed out on promotion by two points. This season they have won 14 games from 14. There are similar stories elsewhere.
There are some big clubs who are keen to work their way up the pyramid. Nottingham Forest, Burnley and Wolves have been trying to break into the Championship for the last few seasons but have missed out due to the one promotion spot on offer.
Opening up more promotion places would be a better route forward.
The WSL has been a closed league before and it did not work. Even if the two leagues became closed for a limited amount of time, there is a fear that they would never be reopened. This idea may work in the United States, but their game has been built on different principles.
When it comes to shaking up the leagues, nothing is off the table and all options are being considered. It is perfectly reasonable for the WPLL to consider all the possibilities available to them. There are changes that need to be made to the top two tiers and expansion is one of them.
Currently, only one team are promoted from the Championship to the WSL. One option the WPLL should perhaps be looking at is the introduction of a play-off system in the second tier. The team who finish first could be promoted automatically while second to fifth place could battle it out for a second promotion spot. The play-off system would surely increase excitement and would also give more clubs something to play for.
The WPLL and its CEO Nikki Doucet are clear that the women's game does not need to copy the model of men's football. There is no harm in doing some things differently. The WSL does not have to be built in the image of the Premier League and clubs who are not connected to big men's teams – London City Lionesses and Durham for example – are equally as vital to the pyramid as others.
But removing relegation fundamentally goes against the principles of English football. The women's game should consider what it can do differently, but those running it must not go against everything our game stands for.