Can women's football become big business?

The financial scenery of women's shot is changing.

More money is coming into nan crippled and investors and sponsors are taking note.

With nan apical 2 tiers of English women's shot nether caller leadership, nan athletics is astatine a crossroads.

So what could nan financial early hold? And tin women's shot go large business?

Women's Super League (WSL) clubs generated £48m successful gross successful nan 2022-23 play - a emergence of 50% connected nan erstwhile season, according to Deloitte., external

This week, a caller £45m woody for Barclays to stay title sponsors of nan convention was agreed.

It is double nan erstwhile woody and is nan first to beryllium signed by nan WSL's caller company, Women's Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL), which has taken complete nan moving of nan WSL and Women's Championship from nan Football Association.

But this is an manufacture still successful nan early stages of growth, arsenic Dr Christina Philippou - a women's shot finance master - explained.

"We're seeing profits continuously driblet crossed clubs and much spending connected predominantly subordinate wages. That's a bully and bad thing," said Philippou.

"It's a bully point for players and for nan game, because it's showcasing precisely really overmuch it's moving. The bad news is, evidently that's costing clubs much money.

"So moreover though their revenues are going up, truthful are their costs, and their costs are going up by much than their revenues."

Philippou says start-up projects "tend to make losses" which is thing that is "normal" successful football, but not self-sustaining.

There are reasons to beryllium cautious though, epitomised by erstwhile WSL nine Reading who dropped to nan 5th tier from nan Women’s Championship this season because of financial concerns.

Men's clubs worldwide person now woken up to women's shot and their women's teams are progressively dominating nan sport.

Out of nan 23 clubs successful nan WSL and Women's Championship, each but 2 are affiliated pinch men's sides.

Clubs for illustration Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United ain some men's and women's teams.

But location are others trying to forge their ain path.

Durham WFC and London City Lionesses are some independently owned and do not person nan backing of a men's side.

While Durham guidelines alone, London City is portion of a women's-only multi-club model, owned by American businesswoman Michele Kang, which besides owns Washington Spirt and Lyon.

Meanwhile, an finance group has emerged pinch a sole attraction connected women's football.

Mercury/13, co-founded by entrepreneurs Victoire Cogevina Reynal and Mario Malave, person promised to put much than £80m successful clubs crossed Europe.

The group precocious purchased FC Como Women successful Italy's Serie A Femminile and opportunity finance successful English women’s shot is their "number 1 strategical priority".

Part of nan logic revenues are soaring successful nan WSL is because of nan money and resources men's shot provides to its women's clubs, allowing them to turn quicker.

Philippou uses Arsenal arsenic an example. The women's squad regularly plays location matches astatine Emirates Stadium and has entree to nan aforesaid trading resources arsenic it's men's team.

"Their income has massively accrued and a immense portion of that is their matchday income, which is having games astatine nan Emirates - you can't do [that] if you're not affiliated [to a men's club]," she added.

But advancement tin travel astatine a price. Even though each clubs are growing, location remains a important spread successful resources crossed nan league.

Reading's demise has led to increasing concerns that nan women's crippled could beryllium excessively reliant connected men’s football.

Maggie Murphy, erstwhile main executive serviceman of Lewes FC, said: "If nan men's broadside of nan nine chooses to spell a different way, aliases they person an ownership situation aliases get relegated, nan women's squad is still a limited and will suffer arsenic a result."

Another action is multi-club ownership, thing that has been normalised successful nan men's game.

London City Lionesses proprietor Kang has been revolutionary successful nan women's game, pinch her attack and finance receiving wide praise.

"London City don't person to spell done agelong negotiations connected nan men's broadside successful bid to access, facilities," says Murphy.

"They person conscionable bought their ain training facilities, they are looking to bargain their ain crushed and Kang has a immense attraction connected sports subject and female physiology - [they are] crippled changers. It is really, really important successful nan wide wellness of nan ecosystem."

While Kang has her ain root of wealth, Mercury/13 and it's investors purpose to make money arsenic they build their ain empire.

Their exemplary relies connected commercialising clubs, building partnerships and bringing successful various sponsors. By their ain admittance it's "risky", and only clip will show if their ambition matches nan reality.

There is optimism, but for a athletics successful nan early stages of growth, location is besides an consciousness of nan risks and challenges ahead.

"There is simply a batch of potential," said Philippou. "There's amended worth for money investing successful women's athletics astatine nan infinitesimal compared to men's sport.

"But that needs to beryllium sustained and grown successful a measurement that past allows women's shot to travel retired of this maturation shape and go a much mature league."

Murphy added: "I deliberation women's shot is ever held to higher standards [than men's football]. We're almost demanding a batch from a merchandise that has received very small finance complete a 100 years.

"Women's shot is not going distant - it's only going to grow. The clip is correct [for investors] to travel successful now, but it's not easy. There are still truthful galore things we request to build, nan women's shot ecosystem remains fragile."