Women’s Super League Raises Standards With New Salary Floor And Spending Controls

‎Senior Women’s Super League players will be guaranteed a minimum annual salary of £40,000 under the league’s new financial rules for this season.

‎The salary floor varies by the player’s age and by whether their club competes in WSL1 or WSL2, but players aged 23 and over in the top division will receive at least £40,000.

‎The lowest salary tier for young players in WSL2 is now reportedly above the national living wage. This change means all players in the top two divisions can finally be fully professional.

‎Last season, however, several Championship clubs were said to have paid below the minimum wage.

‎As a result, many players had to take on second or even third jobs to support themselves.

‎The minimum salary for senior players in the WSL is higher than that of the U.S. National Women’s Soccer League, where the base pay is $48,500 (£36,100) this year.

‎This further cements the WSL’s status as the leading women’s football league globally. The NWSL, however, has pledged to raise its minimum salary to $82,500 by 2030.

‎English clubs are increasingly competing with their American counterparts to sign top players.

‎There have been four signings by English clubs in excess of €1m (£870,000) this year, with Chelsea breaking the world record to sign the USA defender, Naomi Girma in February for £900,000 before signing her international teammate Alyssa Thompson for about £1.1m from Angel City last month.

‎Arsenal signed Canada’s Olivia Smith from Liverpool for £1m in July before London City Lionesses raised the bar by paying £1.4m to bring in Grace Geyoro from Paris Saint-Germain last month.

‎Unlike the NWSL, the WSL has not implemented a salary cap, but it has introduced stronger financial controls to regulate club spending.

‎Under new rules taking effect this season, clubs can now spend up to 80% of their women’s team revenue, along with a capped owner contribution.

‎Previously, spending was limited to 40% of the parent club’s total revenue. These measures aim to promote sustainability while still encouraging growth in the women’s game.

‎The rules are an attempt to equalise potential spending between those clubs and teams such as London City, while encouraging investment. It is understood that the additional funding cap has been set at £4m, which will allow owners without revenue streams from men’s clubs to invest in their squads without creating a free-for-all.

‎London City made full use of the owner funding allowance following their promotion to the WSL, signing 16 new players this summer.

‎The financial backing came from Michele Kang, who also owns French champions OL Lyonnais.

The WSL declined to comment on the matter.