How can the WSL grow to the next level?

Who's Afraid Of Little Old Me?

In part 1 of this review into women’s football, we looked at the finances of the WSL in 2022/23, highlighting the significant growth in recent years, but also referencing the opportunities and challenges to come.

Part 2 today will focus on how the women’s game can grow to the next level.

Note: I’ve also decided to add a third part to this review, which will look at the valuations of women’s clubs and some of the upcoming changes in the game, as those are big enough subjects to merit a separate article.

Revenue Growth

Deloitte estimates that WSL revenue will have grown by 9% from £48m to £52m last season, assuming no increase in group support, with a projected further rise to £68m in 2024/25, the first season when the WSL will be run by NewCo rather than the Football Association.

If this forecast comes to pass, that means that revenue will have rises £20m (43%) in just two years.

In their Business Case for Women’s Football, UEFA estimated that European women’s football could see a sixfold increase in commercial value (i.e. revenue) over the next decade, reaching an annual value of €686m by 2033, with club sponsorship set to grow to €295m, media rights up to €256m and match day rising to €135m.

Deloitte were even more optimistic, predicting that football will become the most valuable women's sport, with over €500m revenue expected to be generated worldwide by 2024.

Their rationale was explained in this way, “As leagues and clubs continue to professionalise across Europe and further afield, we expect that growing viewership and sponsor interest will create opportunities for clubs to further strengthen match day and commercial revenue.”

Let’s take a look at each revenue stream in turn to see how women’s football might reach these bullish targets.

Match Day Growth

Deloitte have assumed a significant uptick in WSL match day revenue, rising from £7m in 2022/23 to £9m in 2023/24, then really taking off the following season with a substantial increase to £17m. In other words, they anticipate this revenue stream more than doubling in just two years.

This will be driven by attracting more crowds in the WSL, which have already been growing, as seen by the rise in average attendance from 1,923 to 5,616 in 2022/23, then 7,363 last season. Put another way, attendances have nearly quadrupled in the last two years.