Women's Super League

The Women’s Super League (WSL), also known as the Barclays Women’s Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the top tier of English women’s football. Since its induction in 2010, this fully professional league has played a significant role in increasing both the standards and the popularity of the women’s game throughout the country.

📜 Women’s Super League History

The WSL was founded in 2010 as a semi-professional league, replacing the FA Women’s Premier League National Division – which had run since 1991 – as the English women’s top flight, with the first season kicking off the following year. Initially formed with just 8 teams, it has been expanded over the years to 12 clubs.

Following the introduction of a second tier known as the WSL 2 in 2014, the Women’s Super League was renamed WSL 1 until it reverted back to its original name in 2018, with the WSL 2 becoming the FA Women’s Championship.

That same year, the WSL became a fully professional league for the first time; clubs were required to form youth academies and provide their players with contracts of at least 16 hours per week. As a result of the change, standards within the league have improved considerably in recent years, leading to more thrilling, higher quality football.

💯 Women’s Super League Format & Scoring

Seasons typically run from September through to May. Initially, the Women’s Super League ran over the summer from March to October, but in 2017 it returned to the traditional winter calendar to bring it back in line with the rest of English football.

There are 12 teams in the WSL and every season they play each other home and away for a total of 22 matches apiece, using the standard system of 3 points awarded for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a defeat. Teams are ranked on points, with goal difference and then goals scored used as tiebreakers.

At the end of the season, the team at the top of the table are crowned champions, while each of the top 3 qualify for the UEFA Women’s Champions League. The team that finishes bottom of the table are relegated to the Women’s Championship and replaced by the Championship winners.