From the high of finishing the season with a 3-0 victory against Nottingham Forest at St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton FC Women have been hit with devastating news during the summer break.

Ahead of the 2026/27 season, Southampton are set to make significant cuts to their women’s and girl’s programme reaching around £500,000. Around £100,000 of these cuts are expected to directly impact the senior team with the large remainder of the cuts expected to impact the club’s women’s and girl’s programme, including the demotion of the academy from Category 1 to Category 2 status.

ACL injuries remain one of the biggest challenges facing women’s football. Despite growing awareness and increased research, serious knee injuries continue to sideline players across domestic leagues and the international game.

Since 2022 there have been 820 ACL injuries, 83 of them just being this year. This amount of injuries has raised concerns about player welfare and the long-term future of the women’s game. Only halfway through the calendar year, this number of ACL cases sustained is increasingly concerning. And the number will continue to rise as the year progresses.

Whilst many elite players are able to navigate their recovery with top medical teams at higher profile clubs, others in lower leagues are unable to afford surgery and therefore face a long wait. With some top players having suffered and also some players that can’t afford to get ACL surgery. The problem has not disappeared, instead continued to grow rapidly.

For Plymouth Argyle Women, what should have been a season of celebration has ended in disappointment, following a decision by the club to significantly reduce the team’s budget, with the majority of players set to leave when their contracts expire next month. After achieving one of the most successful campaigns in the club's history, players now face uncertainty about the future. 

According to a statement released on behalf of the players, Plymouth Argyle’s board made the decision to significantly reduce the women’s team budget following the conclusion of the 25-26 season. The announcement came shortly after the resignation of manager Marie Hourihan, who had overseen one of the most successful periods in the team's history. Additionally, players were informed via email that they would be released when their contracts expire next month.

Manchester City have today announced the opening of a new £10 million state-of-art first-team facility at the City Football Academy. This facility is a dedicated headquarters specifically for the Women’s First Team.

This is a great step forward for the squad after they were announced as Barclays Women’s Super League Champions on Wednesday for the first time in over ten years. They are set to lift the trophy away at West Ham on Saturday.

In fact, this is one of the largest investments ever made into a purpose-built women’s football environment and signifies the huge improvements at Manchester City regarding the infrastructure and running of the women’s side of the club.

Signed in the January transfer window of 2025, Olivia Holdt has already emerged as a highly technical and class player for Tottenham Hotspur Women.

The Danish midfielder contributes significantly to the midfield battle with her fast footwork and ability to create opportunities through intelligent visions and skilful passages of play.

Earlier this week, Spurs announced the agreement of a long-term contract which seals Holdt’s future at the club for years to come. Not only a sign of her commitment to Spurs and continuation , but also her belief in the long-term ambitions and vision of the club under new head coach, Martin Ho.

FIFA has expanded its competitive portfolio by taking the first-ever Women’s Champions Cup to London. 

The competition will be held at the Gtech Community Stadium, home of Brentford FC, for the semi-finals and at the Emirates (referred to as the Arsenal Stadium for the contest) for the third-place play-off and the final.

Arsenal FC Women have confirmed the signing of highly rated Swedish right-back, SmillaHolmberg from Hammarby IF, with the 19-year-old putting pen to paper on a long-term contract.

Holmberg will wear the number 31 shirt and makes her first move abroad after progressing through Hammarby’s academy.

Tottenham Hotspur Women are delighted to announce the signing of Maika Hamano, who joins the club on loan from Chelsea FC Women for the remainder of the 2025/26 season.  

The 21-year-old Japan international adds quality, versatility and attacking intelligence to Martin Ho’s squad as Spurs look to build on an impressive first half of the Barclays Women’s Super League campaign.

Liverpool FC Women confirm the signing of Swedish international, Alice Bergström. The winger joins from Swedish Champions, BK Häcken, as the first signing for the Reds this year.

Subject to international clearance and work permit, Bergström will join Liverpool right away, ready to help the team get back on track after a challenging start to the season. On the back of a Damallsvenskan title, she is ready to bring success to Merseyside.

Tottenham Hotspur announced midfielder, Drew Spence has signed a new, long-term contract with the club.

During over three successful years with the club, Spence has made seventy-five appearances, with ten goals to her name. Aged thirty-three, there is no intent for the midfielder to hang her boots up just yet.

The Jamaican international brings dominance and passion to Spurs’ midfield, unafraid to challenge for the ball and pose attacking threat from outside the box.

For more than 21,000 school children, the dream of playing at the home of English football, Wembley Stadium suddenly feels closer.

The EFL and Utilita have launched a new season of the Kids and Girls Cup, one of the country’s biggest junior football tournaments. This gives ambitious footballers the opportunity to represent their local club on the national stage. 

The Utilita Kids & Girls Cup are national tournaments for young football players, which offer children the ultimate once in a lifetime experience to play at Wembley. A huge number of aspiring footballers from across 2,500 schools will take part in this season’s competitions, in which they will represent seventy-two EFL Clubs across England and Wales. 

Tottenham Hotspur defender, Molly Bartrip recently announced a new partnership with Bloomsbury Football for the 2025/26 season.

Bloomsbury Football is a charity that uses the power of football to change lives. Since the pandemic, the number of young people facing social isolation, mental illness and physical inactivity is on the rise. The charity aims to grant all children equal access to sport, with emphasis on the benefits of football both physically and mentally on young people.

Nike has strengthened its relationship with women’s football in England by extending its sponsorship of the Barclays Women’s Super League. 

As part of the new five-year deal, the sportswear giant will provide free boots to every player across WSL and Barclays WSL 2 football. With the exception of those already in partnership with another brand for football boots. It is believed that already over two-hundred-and-fifty players have already signed up to the initiative, with the promise of access to sufficient sporting equipment.

The PFA awards took place on Tuesday 19^th August to champion the footballing talent in the English leagues. These annual awards represent the growth of the sport and recognise some of the most successful individuals throughout the 2024/25 season.

With several Barclays Women’s Super League stars on the red carpet, the list of nominees showcases the prowess and talent of the league on the global stage.

England international Nikita Parris has left Brighton and Hove Albion following the expiration of her contract. She is joining London City Lionesses, on the back of their promotion to the Barclays Women’s Super League.

Parris joined the Seagulls from Manchester United on deadline day in September 2024. She made an immediate impact, scoring on her first league start, just two minutes into a WSL match against Aston Villa. She then went on to net twelve goals in twenty-eight appearances across all competitions.

Everton have announced the signing of twenty-six--year-old defender, Maz Pacheco from Aston Villa. Following the expiration of her contract with the Villains, Pacheo awaits a new chapter in Merseyside.

The Philippines international becomes the eighth addition to Brian Sorensen’s squad this summer, ahead of Everton Women’s historic first season at Goodison Park. With memories of her childhood at the heart of this move, Pacheco looks to make an impact on this promising side ahead of the 2025/26 season.

Is abuse in the women’s game increasing?

Despite the rising popularity and visibility of women’s football in recent years, the game has unfortunately brought with it a surge in negative and sometimes abusive commentary, both online and offline.

England defender, Lucy Bronze expressed abuse is on the rise after teammate Jess Carter was racially targeted during this summer’s UEFA Women’s EURO. There is no room for any kind of hate in sports. But it still occurs. These actions will not be tolerated.

Manchester City have confirmed the signing of central midfielder, Sydney Lohmann from Bayern Munich ahead of the new Barclays Women's Super League season.

The twenty-five-year-old is heading to England to start a new chapter, pushing herself outside her comfort zone. With a three-year deal, she has her sights set on success and personal development in the blue side of Manchester.