Manchester United has submitted application to join WSL2
After countless years of the fans asking and demanding that United create a women’s team, United have submitted an application to the FA to establish a team in the second tier of the Women’s Super League.
If approved, the squad would be based at the club’s historic training center at The Cliff.
Woodward had this to say, “ We are pleased to announce that the club intends to establish its first ever professional women’s team and has submitted an application to enter WSL2.
The FA has provided excellent support through the process and we believe that launching a team in WSL2 would give many more of our graduates from the Regional Talent Club the chance to establish themselves as first-team players.
The Manchester United women’s team must be built in the same image and with the same principles as the men’s first team and offer academy players a clear route to top-level football within the club.“
2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup schedule released | 08.02.2018
The match schedule for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, which will be held in France next year, was announced today.
fifa.com reports that Paris will host the competition’s opening match on 7 June, followed by round-of-16 matches (22-25 June) in Valenciennes, Le Havre, Reims, Paris, Rennes, Grenoble, Nice and Montpellier.
Quarter-final matches (27-29 June) wil be staged in Valenciennes, Le Havre, Paris and Rennes, semi-final matches (2-3 July) in Lyon, and the match for third place (6 July) in Nice.
The final of the FIFA Women’s World Cup will see a return to Lyon on 7 July.
Further information on the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019 can be found here.
FIFA announces a Women's Confederation Cup to be held at the end of 2018 | 19.12.2017
According to the French website footofeminin, fr, FIFA has proposed the creation of the first Women's Confederations Cup to be held towards the end of 2018 on the island of New Caledonia in Oceania, said president, Gianni Infantino, during his visit to Noumea, the capital of the oceanic archipelago, during an executive congress held there by FIFA.
In this congress, it also focused on the reform of competitions at the women's level, such as a Women's World League that would replace the U-20 and U-17 world championships, and would be played each year with the participation of 48 countries of 6 confederations starting in 2020. Infantino's ambitious project would be debated and voted on March 15 and 16 in Bogota, during the session of the FIFA Council.
The objective: "to involve more nations and allow young women to live a World Cup in all its evolution", according to Infantino.
As for the Women's Confederations Cup, the president of the Football Federation of New Caledonia, Steeve Laigle assured that he is delighted to organize this tournament. It will be a format similar to the masculine one that is played since 1992, where the champions of each confederation participate, plus the absolute world champion and the organizing country for a total of 8 competing countries.
For the specific case of the new tournament would participate: New Caledonia as host country, the United States as world champion of 2015 and the Netherlands , current champion of the European Women's Championship. The remaining five spots will be known from the continental tournaments that will be played in 2018 such as: Copa America, CONCACAF World Cup, Asian Cup, African Cup and Oceania Cup.
Oxford To Reconsider WSL Licence Application in March | 06.12.2017
Oxford United WFC have confirmed that the club has not, at this stage, applied for a WSL licence for the next two seasons.
It is an understandably cautious approach as they have elected to wait to decide at what level they will best be positioned to continue to compete, once they know more about how the top tiers will look in the future.
November was the date for the first round of the application process and as their statement reads:
“…there will be a subsequent opportunity in March to reconsider our position.
“We are committed to investing in and developing Oxford United WFC but we are awaiting further information on the composition and structure of the competition.
“The club will use the next few months to assess the business model of WSL going forward to ensure that we secure the best long term future for Oxford United WFC.”
Lewes FC’s Equality Project Earns International Endorsement | 30.11.2017
Lewes FC, who you will remember are the first professional or semi-professional club in the world to commit to equal support for its men and women players, has confirmed the first international endorsement of its Equality FC project, by announcing a partnership agreement with the campaigning sports brand SKINS.
Lewes launched their ground-breaking Equality FC campaign back in July to help raise awareness of gender inequality in football. SKINS, who have purchased a life ownership share in the club, will now support Lewes in encouraging more opportunities within women’s and girl’s football both at home and abroad.
In addition to a commitment to pay, the Equality FC project provides equal resource for coaching and local grassroots investment to drive equal participation in the game. SKINS’ Chairman, Jaimie Fuller, who has campaigned on equality and ethical sporting issues across the world, is delighted to support Lewes FC’s aim of furthering gender equality in football.
Jaimie said: “As a challenger brand we’ve led campaigns against governing bodies including FIFA, the IOC and the UCI, but now we’re delighted to be supporting a community group which deserves maximum visibility. Lewes FC’s vision for true equality within football is one we’re proud to endorse.
“SKINS has developed a proud reputation for upholding what we call the True Spirit Of Competition within everything we do and, as part of the association, we’ll work to promote Equality FC across all our territories and specifically, with our partners and consumers across the world.”
Stuart Fuller, Chairman of Lewes FC said: “SKINS are not only a respected brand in the sporting world for their excellent products but also for their commitment to campaigning on some of the major issues impacting the sporting industry today. They share a number of our visions and values on equality and we are delighted that they have become one of our life owners as well as a valued commercial partner.”
As a community club, Lewes is wholly owned by its fans. SKINS life ownership share has been purchased in two ways. 50% of the share has been paid for by the company with the remainder supplied by staff and global partners. As part of the association, SKINS will provide an equal share of technical product for the club’s men and women’s senior teams.
Atlético de Madrid and Santa Fe will play for the Copa Hispanoamericana on January 31 | 23.11.2017
Atlético de Madrid and Independiente Santa Fe, champions of the Spanish League (Liga Iberdrola) and Colombia (Liga Águila), respectively, will play next January 31 in Madrid for the first Copa Hispanoamericana in history.
"We reached an agreement with the Spanish League so that the champion of the women's league, in this case Santa Fe, will play in January against the champion of that country: Atlético de Madrid," said Jorge Perdomo, president of the Colombian Football Division. The South American entity has signed a series of agreements with China, Germany and Spain on issues of selling players, television and advertising rights among other aspects, to which this party would be linked.
The clash should have been played on August 31 but was postponed because it could not fit the schedule of both teams. The Colombian team is currently on vacation after concluding its participation in the Copa Libertadores tournament in which it was eliminated at the group stage.
Although the main core of Santa Fe is composed of Colombian players, the squad has six foreigners of four different nationalities : Kimika Sanell (Trinidad and Tobago), María Alejandra Peraza and Oriana Yoselyn Altuve (Venezuela), Carol Sánchez and Daphne Melissa Herrera (Costa Rica) and Chinyelu Asher (United States).
Denmark WNT received a four year suspended ban from UEFA | 18.11.2017
Denmark’s Women National team have received a four year suspended ban from UEFA competition matches, after refusing to play a World Cup qualifying game with Sweden in Gothenburg on the 20th October 2017.
The Euro 2017 finalists went on strike over pay and conditions causing the game on 20th October to be cancelled.
Sweden were awarded the game with a 3 – 0 win in Group 4 after Denmark’s decision not to play. UEFA also fined the Danish Football Association 20,000 EURO.
UEFA has granted DBU a conditional penalty, which means that if they fail to play a game within the next four years, they will be excluded from UEFA Tournaments.
Colombia Women's Team 'Furious' After Model Fronts Kit Unveiling | 10.10.2017
Adidas have angered the Colombia women's football team by using actress and former Miss Colombia Paulina Vega Dieppa to front the unveiling of their new kit.
The Independent's Jack de Menezes reported the women's team are "furious" with the German sportswear company, especially given the men's shirt reveal used star playmaker James Rodriguez as the kit model.
Colombia's women have enjoyed plenty of success in recent years, finishing as runners-up to Brazil at the Copa America Femenina twice in succession in 2010 and 2014 and reaching the last 16 of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup before losing to eventual winners the United States.
Vanessa Cordoba, Las Cafeteras goalkeeper, outlined her grievances on social media and suggested star striker Catalina Usme as an ideal person to have fronted the campaign, per De Menezes:
"I have nothing against Adidas, and I acknowledge that football belongs to everyone, whether they play or not. I also appreciate that they gave the shirt to a successful and influential woman for advertising purposes.
"However, in terms of respect and merit, one of the players should have received it first. It's fine that they include celebrities to help promote football, I just don't agree that Paulina Vega should wear the shirt before, say, Catalina Usme."
Bayern Munich's Rodriguez was an obvious choice to front the men's campaign having starred for Colombia since the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he won the Golden Boot.
Given the choice to use Rodriguez as a model for the men's kit, it is little surprise Adidas' decision to use Dieppa instead of one of the women's team has been met with dismay.
Club Statement from Yeovil Town Ladies | 10.11.2017
FA WSL Licence Application 2018/19 season onwards
With the 10th November being a date strongly etched in the minds of everyone connected to Yeovil Town Ladies FC, the club is now in a position to inform sponsors, partners and all fans of its future plans.
The FA announcement (click here for more info) on 27th September, introduced new criteria, including a fully professional top tier, with players receiving a minimum of 16 hours of contact time per week.
After a lengthy and very detailed process of collaborative thinking and working with a number of interested parties, Yeovil Town Ladies FC has today submitted what it considers to be a very strong submission for a Tier One application for the 2018/19 season, to continue to play football at the elite level of the women's game.
The collaborative approach will not only see full-time players training 19.25 hours per week (rising to 20.25 in the 2020 season), but it also has a strong mission and vision, for the new academy programme.
With an already strong and established partnership with Bridgwater and Taunton College, this will see the education partners not only become an essential part for the clubs future elite players, whereby players aged sixteen plus can study and play, but it also becomes the clubs full time training ground, with access to grass pitches, 3G, gym, performance lab, medical room, classrooms, analysis suite, plus more.
Furthermore, the club has devised a strategic plan, which will focus on building its links even more in the community, with plans to engage with 20,000 children in the 2018/19 season.
The application relies solely on developing and growing its own financial resources and is based on long term self sustainability which the Club has always placed at the heart of its ethos. It is not reliant in any way on any investment from Yeovil Town Football Club, which is named as the parent Club in the application.
Club Chairman Steve Allinson stated "As a club we have been open in expressing our concerns at the speed of the proposed changes announced by the FA. This application makes it clear that we want to grow and build on our incredible achievements in the last three years.
“It is now up to the FA to decide on whether they wish to reward our hard work, dedication and ambition by granting us the opportunity to continue to play at this level. I sincerely hope that they do.
"I want to pay tribute to all those who have worked so hard on putting this innovative and exciting application together and in particular to Trevor Jenkins and Ewan Greenhill who have spearheaded this approach."
Swedish midfielder Julia Spetsmark to join Manchester City in January 2018 | 07.11.2017
Manchester City has continued to strengthen their women’s squad signing Sweden’s Julia Spetsmark.
Spetsmark will join the English champions from KIF Örebro DFF in January 2018. An attacking midfielder, Spetsmark’s time at City will mark her first foray into a national league outside of Sweden, an opportunity she is relishing. A self-described attacking midfielder, Spetsmark is looking forward to making her mark at Manchester City and helping the team as they aim to retain their three domestic titles and challenge for the UEFA Women’s Champions League trophy.
Speaking about joining Manchester City in January 2018, Spetsmark said: “I’ve always wanted to play in England and I’m so happy to have the chance to do that now. Manchester City is a big club and the calibre of the training facilities and coaching staff at the City Football Academy are really going to improve my game and technique.
“I’m an offensive player and I can’t wait to join this club and help them score goals and win trophies”
Nick Cushing, Head Coach of Manchester City Women, added: “Julia is exactly the kind of player we’re looking for. This season our aim is to score more goals and entertain the fans every time we step on the pitch. Julia has the talent, the passion and the drive to help us do that.”
Everton Ladies centre-back Gabby George praised her teammates with the solid performance shown in the 1-0 win against a resilient Birmingham City on Thursday night.
The Blue Girls earned their second straight victory in the Continental Cup thanks to Courtney Sweetman-Kirk’s 12th-minute goal.
And George was particularly to see the Everton backline limit their WSL 1 counterparts to few chances throughout the game in order to secure a hard-fought win.
“I am very pleased with the clean sheet,” said the 20-year-old. “We have been working hard to try to get them in the league, unfortunately it’s not worked out.
“We have put in some very good performances and not got anything from it but to get three points on the board in the Continental Cup with the goal and the clean sheet, we couldn’t ask for much more.”
“I thought we put in a good performance. We showed we could play, defend and all parts of our game against a very good side.”
The Blue Girls have had a tough start to life in WSL 1, playing well against some of the division’s leading sides but coming away empty-handed to date.
Ahead of Sunday’s Continental Cup clash at Manchester City (6pm kick-off), boss Andy Spence was hoping Thursday’s result would give his team extra belief they can beat the best.
“To keep a clean sheet against one of the top WSL 1 teams is a really good sign. We won’t get too over-excited, we’ve got to back that up now, we go to Manchester City, so it doesn’t get any easier!”
“We took our chances but we started the game a lot better, it took us until half-time to really get going the last time we played them but this time we were on it from the first minute and I think that’s been a good feature of our play.”
Spence added: “What really impressed me was seeing a team putting bodies on the line. The girls really dug in, from front to back everyone contributed to a really dogged second-half display and it’s just reward from a build-up of good performances and we are pleased to pick up a really good result as well.”
Japan Win Record Fifth Asian U-19 Title | 28.10.2017
Japan defeated North Korea 1-0 in the Asian Women’s U-19 Championship final, lifting the trophy for the fourth time in the last five tournaments and a record fifth crown overall.
Riko Ueki’s solo effort settled the match 10 minutes into the second half, cutting inside and hammering the ball beyond the goalkeeper.
The result at the Jiangning Sports Centre in Nanjing, China, meant North Korea finished runners-up for the fourth successive finals.
A crowd of 843 turned out to see the hosts beat Australia 3-0 in the third place match and consequently join the two finalists in qualifying for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
He Luyao scored on 20 minutes and the game was effectively over when Xie Qiwen and Jin Kun struck moments apart early in the second half.
North Korea earlier won all their group games against China, Uzbekistan and Thailand, while Japan had a 100% record in the other section against Australia, South Korea and Vietnam.
North Korea then defeated Australia 3-0 in the semi-finals, with Japan hitting five second-half goals against China.
“There is no place for women in football” | 03.10.2017
Konak Belediyespor is the first women’s football club in Turkey to win the league 5 times in a row and earn a star to put on their badge and Turkish Football Federation is yet to pay their championship premium, 50.000 TL (turkish lira), since May.
Football is the most popular sport in Turkey. But unfortunately women’s football is not supported enough by both fans and authorities.
Konak, who have won Women’s 1st League five times in a row, became the first Turkish women’s football club to put a star on their badge. They also achieved to reach the Round of 16 in 2013/14 UEFA Women’s Champions League. But apparently TFF doesn’t care about any of that. The federation is yet to pay the club’s championship prize since May and the club managers couldn’t contact anyone to solve the problem.
Konak club president Zeki Günen said: “We are proud to represent our country but we face many difficulties. Women’s leagues are dying. Federation only pay us 1200 TL for accommodation (for away games). We truly wish they'll do something.
Denmark will not play this week’s 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier against Sweden | 18.10.2017
Denmark Football Association has announced to the Swedish Football Association that Friday’s FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019 qualifier will not be played.
Kim Hallberg, senior vice president says: ‘A historic bad day for the Women’s Team and for everyone in Danish football’
It is the consequence that the players in the Women’s Team have not met for training Monday and Tuesday and DBU already announced on Tuesday that the players’ association announced Wednesday that 10 o’clock would be sent to the Swedish football federation, SFF, DBU has now announced to SFF that the players on the Women’s Team does not want to set up for Friday’s international match, therefore, can not be played.
“It is a historically bad day for the Women’s Team and for Danish football overall. It’s regrettable but also grotesque that we are in a situation where players will not meet up to major international matches, even though we have offered better terms and invited to new negotiations after the matches. We find that the Player Association and the players take international matches and fans as hostages in professional negotiations, “said Kim Hallberg.
DBU has also informed FIFA about the players’ absence from the national team camp and a ban on the international match against Sweden and awaiting a disciplinary ruling that may be both financial, punitive and / or excluded from the entire World Cup qualification. On Tuesday, the Women’s Team should meet Croatia away from home, but also the fight is at great risk of being canceled.
“We do not know the consequences yet, but no matter what is this a huge loss for Danish women’s football, which otherwise had a historic momentum. It is sad and regrettable in every possible way, “says Kim Hallberg.
The DBU and the Player Association have negotiated new national team agreements for the Women’s Team and the U21 Men’s Team since November last year. Last month, LO and DIF have been involved as brokers for eight meetings, which lasted more than 70 hours in total.
DBU has offered to increase the investment in Women’s Team by two million. DKK a year, from 2.6 to 4.6 million. kr. to go to higher fees, bonuses and fellowships as well as a strengthening of the staff around the team. However, there are still disagreements about a number of fundamental issues, including the involvement of the Player Society in activities in the national team camp and the distribution of the fellows.
Scotland are set to lose one of their two berths in the 2018-19 UEFA Women’s Champions League, due to Switzerland rising above them in the rankings.
The Swiss will instead have two UEFA Women’s Champions League entries for the first time in 2018/19, after the provisional access list and the match calendar were confirmed by the governing body.
UEFA explain that the top 12 nations in the UWCL coefficient rankings are entitled to two entries in each season’s competition, and Switzerland have moved up four places to ninth in the rankings, claiming a second berth at the expense of Scotland.
So when Hibernian host Glasgow City in a likely SWPL 1 title decider on 12th November, the stakes will now be that much higher, with no place in Europe for the runners-up.
Those associations with two entries in 2018/19 are: Germany, France, Sweden, England, Spain, Denmark, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Austria, Norway.
All other countries are entitled to one place, though if the eventual winners of this season’s competition do not also qualify via their domestic league, that country could have three entries (assuming they are in the top 12).
The exact round each team enters in depends on the total number of entries, which will be confirmed in June 2018.
The Qualifying Round draw will be made on 22nd June and the final is to be played at Ferencváros Stadium in Budapest, at a date yet to be set in May 2019.
Melbourne City FC have confirmed that Welsh international midfielder Jess Fishlock is returning to the Club for a third consecutive Westfield W-League season ahead of the 2017/18 campaign.
Highly regarded across the globe, Fishlock, 30, will continue her career with City after playing a key role in a historic period for the Club, both on and off the field, throughout its record-breaking two seasons in the W-League.
The Welsh midfielder made a significant contribution last season, earning selection in the Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) W-League Team of the Year with eight goals for the season; including two decisive strikes in both the Semi Final and Grand Final.
Fishlock will also continue her coaching career as a playing senior assistant, alongside Head Coach Patrick Kisnorbo. The duo helped coach City to a Final Series berth and a historic second consecutive Championship last season.
Commenting on her return to City, Fishlock told www.melbournecityfc.com.au:
“I’m really excited to be back here in Melbourne. I’ve been at City from the very beginning and to have been part of the success we have achieved, and to see the progress we have made is something that makes me not only proud, but extremely motivated to achieve more.”
“City provides the perfect environment for me to continue my development as both a player and a coach. The people I have met here and the opportunities I have been given by the City Football Group have really made an impact on me.”
Kisnorbo is delighted to have Fishlock, a player who impresses with both her talent and work-ethic, on board for the Clubs’ title defence.
“Jess has demonstrated during her time at City that she is a natural born leader both on and off the field. She has been an instrumental part of the success we have achieved in the past two seasons and I am looking forward to working with her again this season.”
Fishlock became the first Welsh player to reach 100 international caps in March and has returned home to prepare for Wales’ upcoming 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier against Russia.
Fishlock joins Kyah Simon, Amy Jackson, Rhali Dobson, Hayley Richmond, Tyla-Jay Vlajnic and Sofia Sakalis ahead of City’s season-opener against Perth Glory next Friday.
