The 2019–20 FA WSL season (also known as the Barclays FA Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth edition of the FA Women's Super League (WSL) since it was formed in 2010.[1] It was the second season after the rebranding of the four highest levels in English women's football and the twelve teams contesting the season was the greatest number in the league's history to date, following a steady increase from the original eight.[2] It is the first under the new Barclays title sponsorship following a landmark multi-million pound investment.[3]
Season | 2019–20 |
---|---|
Dates | 7 September 2019 – 5 June 2020 |
Champions | Chelsea 3rd title |
Relegated | Liverpool |
Champions League | Chelsea Manchester City |
Matches played | 87 |
Goals scored | 259 (2.98 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Vivianne Miedema (16 goals) |
Biggest home win | Arsenal 11–1 Bristol City (1 December 2019) |
Biggest away win | Birmingham City 0–6 Chelsea (24 November 2019) |
Highest scoring | Arsenal 11–1 Bristol City (1 December 2019) |
Highest attendance | 38,262 – Tottenham Hotspur 0–2 Arsenal (17 November 2019) |
← 2018–19 2020–21 → |
On 13 March 2020, in line with the FA's response to the coronavirus pandemic, it was announced the season was initially suspended until at least 3 April 2020.[4][5] After further postponements, the season was ultimately ended prematurely on 25 May 2020 with immediate effect.[6] On 5 June 2020, Chelsea were named as champions, moving them up one place ahead of Manchester City on sporting merit after The FA Board's decision to award places on a points-per-game basis. Manchester City were awarded the second Champions League place and Liverpool were relegated using the same method.[7][8]
Teams
editAfter the WSL's restructure going into the 2018–19 season, membership of the league returned solely to performance in the previous season, though the league expanded from eleven teams to twelve as Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur were both promoted after finishing first and second respectively in the Championship during the 2018–19 season,[9] while only Yeovil Town were relegated.[10][11]
Team | Location | Ground | Capacity | 2018–19 season |
---|---|---|---|---|
Arsenal | Borehamwood | Meadow Park | 4,502 | 1st |
Birmingham City | Solihull | Damson Park | 3,050 | 4th |
Brighton & Hove Albion | Crawley | Broadfield Stadium[a] | 6,134 | 9th |
Bristol City | Filton | Stoke Gifford Stadium[b] | 1,500 | 6th |
Chelsea | Kingston upon Thames | Kingsmeadow[c] | 4,850 | 3rd |
Everton | Liverpool | Walton Hall Park[d] | 2,200 | 10th |
Liverpool | Birkenhead | Prenton Park[e] | 16,587 | 8th |
Manchester City | Manchester | Academy Stadium[f] | 7,000 | 2nd |
Manchester United | Leigh | Leigh Sports Village | 12,000 | WC, 1st |
Reading | High Wycombe | Adams Park[g] | 9,617 | 5th |
Tottenham Hotspur | Canons Park | The Hive Stadium[h] | 6,500 | WC, 2nd |
West Ham United | Romford | Rush Green Stadium[i] | 3,000 | 7th |
- ^ Match v Birmingham City moved to Falmer Stadium
- ^ Opening weekend match v Brighton & Hove Albion held at Ashton Gate
- ^ Match v Tottenham Hotspur held at Stamford Bridge
- ^ Opening six home fixtures played at Haig Avenue
- ^ Merseyside derby held at Anfield
- ^ Manchester derby held at City of Manchester Stadium
- ^ Match v Bristol City moved to Madjeski Stadium
- ^ North London derby held at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
- ^ Match v Tottenham Hotspur moved to London Stadium
Stadium changes
editIn response to the record viewing figures during the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, three select fixtures were initially moved to Premier League grounds: The Manchester derby at the City of Manchester Stadium, Chelsea v Tottenham at Stamford Bridge and the North London derby at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.[12][13] In total, eight of the twelve teams have moved FA WSL fixtures to the larger grounds of their men's affiliate teams: Bristol City later announced their opening game would be played at Ashton Gate,[14] Reading moved one of their league fixtures (as well as all three League Cup games) to the Madjeski Stadium[15] and West Ham announced they would host Spurs at the London Stadium.[16] Brighton & Hove Albion moved their match against Birmingham to the Falmer Stadium to coincide with the FA's Women's Football Weekend, held during a men's international break.[17] Liverpool later moved their Merseyside derby, held on the same weekend, to Anfield and Everton scheduled the reverse fixture in February at Goodison Park[18][19] (the match was ultimately left unplayed when the season was suspended and then cancelled).
After originally planning to permanently relocate to their new Walton Hall Park stadium in October 2019 following their opening two home games, delays meant Everton had to postpone the move until February 2020 and eventually scheduled six of their 11 home league games at Haig Avenue in Southport.[20][21][22]
Personnel and kits
edit- As of 23 February 2020
Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
---|---|---|---|---|
Arsenal | Joe Montemurro | Kim Little | Adidas | Fly Emirates |
Birmingham City | Charlie Baxter (interim) | Kerys Harrop | Adidas | Maple from Canada |
Brighton & Hove Albion | Hope Powell | Danielle Buet | Nike | American Express |
Bristol City | Tanya Oxtoby | Loren Dykes | Bristol Sport | Yeo Valley |
Chelsea | Emma Hayes | Magdalena Eriksson | Nike | Yokohama Tyres |
Everton | Willie Kirk | Danielle Turner | Umbro | SportPesa |
Liverpool | Vicky Jepson | Sophie Bradley-Auckland | New Balance | BetVictor |
Manchester City | Alan Mahon (interim) | Steph Houghton | Puma | Etihad Airways |
Manchester United | Casey Stoney | Katie Zelem | Adidas | Chevrolet |
Reading | Kelly Chambers | Natasha Harding | Macron | YLD |
Tottenham Hotspur | Karen Hills Juan Carlos Amorós |
Jenna Schillaci | Nike | AIA |
West Ham United | Matt Beard | Gilly Flaherty | Umbro | Betway |
Managerial changes
editTeam | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Manchester City | Nick Cushing | Signed with New York City FC[23] | 2 February 2020 | 1st | Alan Mahon (interim) | 3 February 2020 |
Birmingham City | Marta Tejedor | Mutual separation[24] | 3 March 2020 | 11th | Charlie Baxter (interim) | 3 March 2020 |
League table
editPos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Chelsea (C) | 15 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 47 | 11 | +36 | 39 | 2.60 | Qualification for the Champions League |
2 | Manchester City | 16 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 39 | 9 | +30 | 40 | 2.50 | |
3 | Arsenal | 15 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 40 | 13 | +27 | 36 | 2.40 | |
4 | Manchester United | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 24 | 12 | +12 | 23 | 1.64 | |
5 | Reading | 14 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 21 | 24 | −3 | 21 | 1.50 | |
6 | Everton | 14 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 19 | 1.36 | |
7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 15 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 15 | 24 | −9 | 20 | 1.33 | |
8 | West Ham United | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 19 | 34 | −15 | 16 | 1.14 | |
9 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 16 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 11 | 30 | −19 | 13 | 0.81 | |
10 | Bristol City | 14 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 38 | −29 | 9 | 0.64 | |
11 | Birmingham City | 13 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 23 | −18 | 7 | 0.54 | |
12 | Liverpool (R) | 14 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 8 | 20 | −12 | 6 | 0.43 | Relegation to the Championship |
Results
editSeason statistics
edit- As of 23 February 2020
Top scorers
editRank | Player | Club | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Vivianne Miedema | Arsenal | 16 |
2 | Bethany England | Chelsea | 14 |
3 | Pauline Bremer | Manchester City | 10 |
4 | Chloe Kelly | Everton | 9 |
5 | Lauren James | Manchester United | 6 |
Ji So-Yun | Chelsea | ||
Ellen White | Manchester City | ||
8 | Daniëlle van de Donk | Arsenal | 5 |
Rachel Furness | Liverpool | ||
Lauren Hemp | Manchester City | ||
Adriana Leon | West Ham United | ||
Kim Little | Arsenal | ||
Jordan Nobbs | Arsenal | ||
Guro Reiten | Chelsea | ||
Ebony Salmon | Bristol City | ||
Aileen Whelan | Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
Fara Williams | Reading | ||
Katie Zelem | Manchester United |
Clean sheets
editRank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Ellie Roebuck | Manchester City | 10 |
2 | Manuela Zinsberger | Arsenal | 6 |
3 | Mary Earps | Manchester United | 5 |
4 | Ann-Katrin Berger | Chelsea | 4 |
Tinja-Riikka Korpela | Everton | ||
Becky Spencer | Tottenham Hotspur | ||
Megan Walsh | Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
8 | Sophie Baggaley | Bristol City | 3 |
9 | Hannah Hampton | Birmingham City | 2 |
Rachael Laws | Reading | ||
Pauline Peyraud-Magnin | Arsenal | ||
Carly Telford | Chelsea |
Records
editThe match between Arsenal and Bristol City on 1 December 2019 ended 11–1, setting a new WSL record scoreline, surpassing the 9–0 win of Liverpool Ladies over Doncaster Rovers Belles in 2013.[25]
Awards
editMonthly awards
editMonth | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Ref. | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Manager | Club | Player | Club | ||
September | Karen Hills Juan Amorós |
Tottenham Hotspur | Chloe Kelly | Everton | [26][27][28][29] |
October | Emma Hayes | Chelsea | Kirsty Hanson | Manchester United | [30][31] |
November | Willie Kirk | Everton | Millie Bright | Chelsea | [32][33] |
December | Joe Montemurro | Arsenal | Vivianne Miedema | Arsenal | [34][35] |
January | Emma Hayes | Chelsea | Bethany England | Chelsea | [36][37] |
February | Emma Hayes | Chelsea | Bethany England | Chelsea | [38][39] |
Annual awards
editAward | Winner | Club |
---|---|---|
Barclays FA WSL Player of the Season | Bethany England[40] | Chelsea |
Barclays FA WSL Manager of the Season | Emma Hayes[40] | Chelsea |
PFA Players' Player of the Year | Bethany England[41] | Chelsea |
PFA Young Player of the Year | Lauren Hemp[42] | Manchester City |
FWA Footballer of the Year | Vivianne Miedema[43] | Arsenal |
PFA Team of the Year[44] | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Goalkeeper | Ann-Katrin Berger (Chelsea) | |||||||||||
Defenders | Maren Mjelde (Chelsea) | Leah Williamson (Arsenal) | Millie Bright (Chelsea) | Magdalena Eriksson (Chelsea) | ||||||||
Midfielders | Caroline Weir (Manchester City) | Kim Little (Arsenal) | Ji So-yun (Chelsea) | |||||||||
Forwards | Bethany England (Chelsea) | Vivianne Miedema (Arsenal) | Chloe Kelly (Everton) |
Prize money
editAn FA WSL prize fund was put in place for the first time, following the new Barclay's sponsorship deal, with the entire pot totaling £500,000. The money was awarded in decreasing increments with the champions winning £100,000 and the last placed team being awarded £6,000.[45][46]
Finish | Prize money |
---|---|
1st | £100,000 |
2nd | £67,000 |
3rd | £60,000 |
4th | £55,000 |
5th | £49,000 |
6th | £43,000 |
7th | £36,000 |
8th | £30,000 |
9th | £24,000 |
10th | £18,000 |
11th | £12,000 |
12th | £6,000 |
See also
edit- 2019–20 FA Women's League Cup
- 2019–20 FA Women's Championship (tier 2)
- 2019–20 FA Women's National League (tier 3 & 4)
References
edit- ^ "The History of Women's Football". Football Association. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
- ^ The Football Association (26 February 2018). "Women's league restructure". www.thefa.com. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ Association, The Football. "Barclays unveiled as title sponsor of FA Women's Super League". www.thefa.com.
- ^ Association, The Football. "Decision made to postpone professional football until Friday 3 April at the earliest". www.thefa.com.
- ^ Flood, George (13 March 2020). "Women's Super League and Championship suspended due to coronavirus". Evening Standard.
- ^ "Statement: FA Barclays WSL and Women's Championship season ended". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
- ^ "Chelsea named Women's Super League champions, Liverpool relegated". BBC Sport. 5 June 2020.
- ^ Association, The Football. "Chelsea Women awarded Barclays FA WSL title and Aston Villa win Women's Championship". www.thefa.com.
- ^ "Tottenham Hotspur won promotion to the Women's Super League with a 1–1 draw at Aston Villa which confirmed they will finish second in the Championship". BBC news. 1 May 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
- ^ "Women's Super League: New full-time, professional era – all you need to know". 9 September 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
- ^ "Yeovil Town Ladies hope for 'new chapter', after avoiding administration". BBC Sport. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
- ^ "WSL: Etihad Stadium & Stamford Bridge to host 2019–20 season openers". 8 July 2019.
- ^ "Women's Super League: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to host Spurs v Arsenal in November". BBC. 10 July 2019.
- ^ "City Women open season at Ashton Gate". Bristol City.
- ^ "Women set for 3 Madejski matches as Conti Cup fixtures finalised". www.readingfc.co.uk.
- ^ "West Ham United to host historic match at London Stadium". www.whufc.com.
- ^ "WSL action returns to the Amex". www.brightonandhovealbion.com.
- ^ "Liverpool Women v Everton Women: Anfield to host Merseyside derby for first time". 24 October 2019.
- ^ "Everton To Host Liverpool In First Goodison WSL Derby". www.evertonfc.com.
- ^ Association, The Football. "Everton Ladies Set For New Walton Home". www.liverpoolfa.com.
- ^ "Everton Ladies' 2019/20 WSL Fixtures Confirmed". www.evertonfc.com.
- ^ "New Date And Venue For Women's Clash At Home To Reading". www.evertonfc.com. 20 December 2019.
- ^ "NICK CUSHING TO JOIN NEW YORK CITY FC". Manchester City FC. 9 January 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- ^ "CLUB STATEMENT – MARTA TEJEDOR". Birmingham City FC. 3 March 2020. Archived from the original on 3 March 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- ^ "Arsenal Women 11–1 Bristol City Women". BBC Sport. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
- ^ "September Manager of the Month". Barclays football. 12 October 2019.
- ^ "Karen and Juan scoop Manager of the Month prize". Tottenham Hotspur.
- ^ "September Player of the Month". Barclays football. 12 October 2019.
- ^ "Everton Star Kelly Lands WSL Prize". www.evertonfc.com.
- ^ "October Manager of the month". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
- ^ "October Player of the month". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
- ^ "November Manager of the Month". Barclays football. 14 December 2019.
- ^ "November Player of the Month". Barclays football. 14 December 2019.
- ^ "December Manager of the Month". Barclays football. 4 January 2020.
- ^ "December Player of the Month". Barclays FA WSL. 4 January 2020.
- ^ "January Manager of the Month". Barclays football. 1 February 2020.
- ^ "January Player of the Month". Barclays FA WSL. 1 February 2020.
- ^ "February Manager of the Month". Barclays football. 7 March 2020.
- ^ "February Player of the Month". Barclays FA WSL. 7 March 2020.
- ^ a b "Chelsea duo Emma Hayes and Beth England win Women's Super League awards". BT.com.
- ^ "Bethany England named number one by peers". 8 September 2020.
- ^ "Hemp scoops second PFA Women's Young Player award". 8 September 2020.
- ^ "Vivianne Miedema: Arsenal & Netherlands striker named FWA Women's Footballer of Year". BBC Sport. 1 July 2020.
- ^ "De Bruyne named PFA Player of the Year". BBC Sport.
- ^ "Prize fund". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
- ^ "Women's Super League: Barclays agree multi-million sponsorship deal". 20 March 2019.