A new structure has been announced for the elite women’s game

Today the legal ownership of the Women’s Super League and Women’ Championship transferred from The Football Association to the Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL)

What you need to know:

• WPLL’s vision is ‘to become the global leader in women’s football. The aim is to be pioneers in the sport, setting ambitious goals and pushing boundaries to elevate the game’.

• Going forwards, each WSL & WC club will be shareholders in the WPLL for the first time.

• The company will be headed by CEO Nikki Doucet, with board members and other senior hires yet to be announced. Dawn Airey will Chair the WPLL Board.

• The WPLL will be supported by the Premier League through a co-operation & funding agreement including a £20million interest-free loan.

• The Premier League will also offer ‘extensive knowledge sharing across broadcasting, commercial and football operations’

What don’t we know?

• The TV broadcast deal was rolled over this year and the WPLL will have to negotiate a new longer-term deal for the 2025/26 season and beyond.

• Games not broadcast by Sky/BBC will be shown on YouTube this year (as opposed to the FA player). We’ll have to wait to see how this format does!

• Whether any other external investment will be made into the WPLL.

• How the WPLL will make decisions. Each club has voting rights, but all the clubs are in very different positions financially, in terms of their ambitions and the models within which they operate – so finding a consensus could be challenging.

It’s an exciting and transitional time for women’s football and this is the first step into a new era.