Relegation from Women's Super League Two "will be introduced for the first time" in the '17-18 season when the WSL adopts a winter calendar, according to the BBC. Previously, it has not been possible to drop from the WSL into the third tier, the Women's Premier League. The league also revealed that applications for WSL licenses from '18-19 "will initially only be open to the existing WSL clubs, not new teams." But should any club fail to meet the criteria, then other clubs may apply. Meanwhile, WSL clubs "are to receive an increase in funding from the Football Association," up by as much as 79% for second-tier sides, as follows:
- WSL 1 clubs will have access to up to £92,500 ($116,300), up from £70,000 ($88,000)
- WSL 2 clubs will have access to up to £62,500 ($78,600), up from £35,000 ($44,000)
With an initially closed process for license applications, "the existing WSL clubs -- plus those promoted to WSL 2 by right -- will have priority over any new teams wishing to join the league." This "reduces the likelihood" of new women's clubs joining the WSL without working their way through the lower divisions of the women's football pyramid (
BBC, 12/9).
