The Premier League has offered its support to the Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship by providing ‘more than £1m’ to help the competitions restart next season.
Following COVID-19 all professional women’s football in the UK was cancelled, a decision the FA cited as being ‘in the best interest of the women’s game’, allowing teams to prepare and plan for next season.
The support of the Premier League, opting to help fund the top two divisions in order to mitigate the financial damages of the cancellation, will be seen as a significant boost for the women’s game as it looks to rebuild into the next campaign.
Additionally, the top-tier competition has also pledged its support to The National League, by providing £200,000 to the organisation to stabilise its finances, after the competition was also severely affected by COVID-19.
Richard Masters, Chief Executive of the Premier League, stated: “The Premier League are big supporters of the wider game and we will continue our commitments in this area despite our significant financial losses and ongoing uncertainty.
“In addition, we will provide £200,000 to The National League to help them to conclude their season and give more than £1million to the WSL and the Women’s Championship to restart next season.”
The WSL and Championship officially concluded on May 25 with Chelsea declared top-tier champions via a points-per-game system. In comparison, the Premier League has resumed its operations after funding for coronavirus testing and being able to apply government guidelines, something that the Women’s game could not fund.
Nevertheless, with the support from the Premier League, professional women’s football will be given a financial boost which will help its two competitions abide by government and FA protocols.
Kelly Simmons, The FA director of the Women’s professional game added: “It is well documented that the football industry is going through a difficult period with the COVID-19 pandemic, and The FA has been transparent with our own challenges.
“We would like to thank the Premier League for its support in providing crucial funding that will allow us to align with their testing protocols when we come back for the 2020/21 season.
“Player safety is our number one priority. Every time a player steps onto the field, we want them to feel that they are in a safe environment, and we will continue to work with government, clubs and football stakeholders to ensure that happens.”
Despite the financial support, it has yet to be confirmed exactly when the National League, WSL and Women’s Championship 2020/21 campaign will commence.
