Premier League considers takeover of FA Women's Super League

The FA is believed to be open to the idea because it sees the women's England teams and grassroots participation as its long-term priorities.

Published : Jul 04, 2019 02:30 IST

Arsenal is the defending FA Women's Super League champion.
Arsenal is the defending FA Women's Super League champion.
lightbox-info

Arsenal is the defending FA Women's Super League champion.

The Premier League is weighing up taking control of the English Women's Super League from the Football Association, according to British media reports on Wednesday.

The BBC said Premier League clubs have agreed to conduct a feasibility study into the matter following talks with the FA, which founded the WSL in 2011.

No timeframe has yet been proposed, with the BBC stating that any takeover could be "several seasons away", and neither the Premier League or FA would comment.

READ | Points proven, Women's World Cup heads into grand finale

The FA is believed to be open to the idea because it sees the women's England teams and grassroots participation as its long-term priorities.

The WSL is a full-time professional competition with 12 teams for 2019-20 and was recently boosted by a £10 million sponsorship deal with Barclays.

That agreement reflected the rise in popularity of the women's game.

England's dramatic women's World Cup semi-final defeat to the United States this week was the most watched television event of the year so far in the United Kingdom, attracting a peak audience of 11.7 million.

ALSO READ | Manchester derby set for Women's Super League opener

The Lionesses bowed out after missing a late penalty in a 2-1 loss to the world champions.

Viewing figures released by BBC showed that the match in Lyon grabbed a peak share of the TV audience of over 50 percent.

It was the fourth time this tournament that the record UK TV audience for a women's match had been broken.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment