WSL clubs to hold vote over scrapping relegation

The plan would halt relegation from the women’s top flight as part of a wider expansion of the game

Chelsea have won the last five WSL titles and the proposals am to create a more competitive league (John Walton/PA Wire)

Women’s Super League clubs will vote on a plan to halt relegation from the top-flight as part of a wider expansion of the women’s game over the next few years.

A proposal by the Women’s Professional League Ltd (WPLL) to stop relegation from the 12-team WSL from the 2026/27 season aims to expand both the top flight and second-tier Championship to 16 teams.

As part of the plans, promotion from the Championship would continue with one club moving into the WSL each season over the following four years with relegation then reinstated for the 2030/31 season, though that is not a guarantee.

The 23 WSL and Championship clubs have agreed to discuss and refine the proposal before voting on the potential new structure at the end of the season.

The most eye-opening and controversial element of the plans is, of course, the removal of relegation from the WSL but there are also concerns over how teams win promotion from the Championship with a range of ideas under consideration, including a playoff system.

Elsewhere in the proposal the Championship looks set to be rebranded as the WSL2 from next season as part of a greater desire for alignment in the women’s game.

WPLL member clubs will reconvene at the end of April and a two-thirds majority will need to vote in favour of the proposals to see them move to the next stage. Changes to the relegation/promotion structure must have at least eight clubs vote in favour from each division and any proposed changes by the WPLL will then need to be ratified by the FA board.

The radical plans from the WPLL hope to grow the professional women's game (Getty Images)

The idea behind the proposal is that removing the threat of relegation would encourage owners to invest and develop a more competitive WSL in order to stave off stagnation. Chelsea have topped the league for the last five years and look on course for a sixth WSL title this season.

A broader aim is to make both professional leagues competitive and allow newly promoted teams a greater chance of competing and remaining in the top flight.