Women’s Super League generates record revenue on back of England’s success

LONDON – Women’s Super League (WSL) clubs generated £48 million (S$82.5 million) in aggregate revenue in the 2022-23 season, a rise of 50 per cent on the previous campaign, Deloitte said in its Annual Review of Football Finance published on June 20.

The aggregate revenue in the WSL has been steadily increasing every year and the figures for the 2022-23 season – which followed England’s triumph at Euro 2022 – were a huge increase on 2021-22 (£32 million) and more than double that of the 2020-21 campaign (£20 million).

The report also said that the cumulative attendance surpassed one million for the first time across the WSL and the second-tier Championship in the 2023-24 season, a knock-on effect after England finished runners-up at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

As clubs capitalised on the surge in popularity by having women’s teams play in their main stadiums, matchday revenues among WSL clubs grew to £7 million while average attendance was up nearly 200 per cent on the previous season.

“WSL clubs are home to world-class players whose success on the international stage has drawn new fans to the domestic game,” Deloitte Sports Business Group’s Jenny Haskel said.

“Driving a loyal fanbase, habitual viewing and distinct commercial partnerships was a clear priority for WSL clubs in the 2022-23 season and the soaring revenue growth achieved demonstrates the strides that have been made.”

Arsenal’s women will play 11 of their home games at their 60,000-capacity Emirates Stadium next season, making it the primary venue for the team.

Deloitte expects the WSL club aggregate revenue to reach £52 million in the 2023-24 season, which could rise to £68 million in the upcoming campaign.

Although the average revenue for WSL clubs was £4 million in the 2022-23 season, the top four revenue-generating clubs – Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United – recorded 66 per cent of the total revenue for the league.

The wage bills from these four clubs alone accounted for over half (57 per cent) of the league’s total wage costs.

WSL clubs’ pre-tax losses rose to £21 million in the 2022-23 season but Tim Bridge, lead partner in the Deloitte Sports Business Group, said there is “significant growth” across the women’s game and continued investment is crucial.

“Many women’s clubs continue to rely on financial contributions from their wider group structure, however this is not a new revelation in football where many owners prop up the shortfalls of loss-making clubs,” he said.

“It’s important the industry does not hold women’s clubs to a profitability metric that the wider game has yet to consistently achieve.” REUTERS