What Will Women's Football in England Look Like in 10 Years?
In the 2025-26 season, women's football in England has seen significant growth and transformation. The Women's Super League (WSL) and WSL2 now operate independently from the Football Association (FA), benefiting from increased outside investment and multi-club ownership. Notably, the transfer market has broken the £1 million barrier twice in a single summer, and minimum standards have been raised across the leagues.
Attendance figures have surged strongly, with the average WSL attendance reaching 6,884. Arsenal leads with an average home crowd of 36,214, while West Ham recorded the lowest with 1,794. This marks a substantial rise from 2015, when the average attendance was 1,076, up from 728 previously.
Participation in football among women and girls has nearly tripled since 2015, growing from almost 2.5 million players to 6,476,326 by October 2025. This growth followed a post-European Championship period that saw a 196% increase in online searches for playing opportunities. Additionally, the number of female coaches rose by 12% and female referees by 29% year-on-year.
Education access has improved remarkably, with 90% of schools now offering girls equal access to physical education football in key stages 2 and 3 (ages 7–14). This change affects 2.6 million girls and represents a 31% rise since the 2020-21 period, reaching targets three years ahead of schedule, supported by Barclays sponsorship.
Looking ahead, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have submitted a joint bid to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup. This could mark the first home World Cup since the men's tournament in 1966, with Wembley among the potential stadiums for the event.
FA and WSL leadership stress that the core goal remains to boost participation and to achieve parity in football involvement between boys and girls. While progress continues, challenges remain to further raise minimum standards and reduce disparities across the country.
The year 2025 is seen as a watershed moment for women’s sport in England. Decisive actions in the next decade regarding facilities, coaching, academies, refereeing, research, and fan engagement are essential to maximize the rapid growth and to leverage the 2035 World Cup bid as a unifying objective.
