The WSL is finally back and this season it is bigger and better due to the leagues expansion. This season sees 14 teams in the league and plenty of exciting players joining thanks to a pretty impressive transfer window. It feels like forever ago that we saw Manchester City lift their first title in 10 years, can we see them lift another trophy this season? Only time will tell. Here is a look at this weekends fixtures...

London City Lionesses vs Manchester United

The season is kicking off with one of the teams all eyes are on this season... London City Lionesses. London City have invested heavily this season with them most noticeably bringing in Alexia Putellas from Barcelona, one of the biggest names in the game currently, are we going to see her help her team to their first 3 points of the campaign tonight and show what they are capable of or are we going to see a team now full of big names that need to learn to play together to maximise their full potential? As for their opponents Manchester United we have seen a lot of change for them this off season too with a managerial departure, plenty of players departing and maybe not as many incomings as we expected. This game is going to be a great one for neutral fans so let's see how it plays out.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa

Last season didn't go to plan for either of these teams so they will be coming out with a point to prove this season I am sure. Chelsea have made some strong signings this season and could we see Malard on the scoresheet in her first league game for the club? Chelsea finished 3rd last season and will be wanting to hit the ground running to improve on the ASAP as we all know how tight it can be at the top of the table each season. As for Aston Villa they ended up in the 9th position last season and will be really wanting to prove they can do better but are up against a big test vs Chelsea for their first game. We have seen Villa cause upsets before can they do it again on the opening weekend?

Brighton vs Arsenal

Brighton are one of those teams that just seem to be hovering midtable year after year but could we see this change? Towards the end of last season we saw Brighton really hit a good run of form and saw them cause plenty of obstacles in the title race and they open their campaign against Arsenal, a team they had mixed results against last season. With both these teams bringing in plenty of players but losing a few too we are going to be in for an interesting game which could go either way, again a game perfect for neutral but one that may have fans of either of these teams on the edge of their seats. The question is how will Brighton recently losing their manager effect them for their opening game?

Tottenham vs West Ham

West Ham struggled last season and we didn't see anywhere near the best from them however, they have really invested this off season and it is possible we are going to see them improve on their 10th place finish last season if the team settles down quickly. This should be a good test for both these teams and it should show others what they are going to be capable of. Tottenham have had a fair few ins and outs so again it is going to be interesting to see how those newcomers impact the overall performance.

Crystal Palace vs Everton

Everton has finished 8th in the past 3 seasons so they will be wanting to be hitting the ground running this season to try finish above previous seasons. We have seen that they can often take a while to start picking up the points however, with the summer signings could we see them start the campaign on the right note? Their opponents are Crystal Palace newly promoted back to the WSL. Palace didn't have a good time in their last WSL appearance however, this summer they have added to their ranks, most notably getting Bethany England into the squad. Could we see England get her new team those vital points on opening weekend?

Charlton vs Liverpool 

Newcomers Charlton are hosting Liverpool this weekend, can they pick up their first 3 points of WSL life or will Liverpool spoil the party? Both these teams have lost a fair few players for this season but have also added a few to their ranks but are any of the newcomers going to provide an instant impact? Only time will tell but it is safe to say Charlton will be out there wanting to prove their place in the WSL after playoff victory last season. There may not be a lot of outsiders backing Charlton to do well this season so will they be proving people wrong in week one or will Liverpool show them what top flight football is all about?

Manchester City vs Birmingham

Birmingham possibly have the biggest game of all the newcomers as they head to the Joie Stadium to face the title holders but can they provide the biggest upset of the weekend? Birmingham will be wanting to make their mark on the league early on whilst Manchester City will be wanting to prove they are going to do everything possible to retain their title. Manchester City have been hit by plenty of injuries for the start of the season however, they have shown time after time their squad depth holds plenty of talent for when those injuries hit so will some big names missing be as troublesome for the team as people are making out? This game has the potential to be a high scorer or an upset so which way will it end up going?

Are we going to see any upsets in week one? I guess only time will tell but with it being the opening weekend and teams still getting used to each other anything could happen! Here at Edge of the Area we are so glad the league is back and we are looking forward to covering it throughout the course of the season. Get used to previews, wrap ups and so much more WSL content. 

It is safe to say the transfer window is in full swing and we have seen some fantastic moves across the top flight already. Teams are really looking to build upon previous years and we are seeing some silly money being paid to ensure the teams are getting those players they really think are going to help them improve on last seasons campaign. Some teams have also lost some of their key players to the NWSL after long periods of service, it is safe to say there is a lot of change all round in the league for the upcoming season which is going to be exciting to see how teams cope with those previously key players moving on. 

There has already been some great transfers take place across the league and here are my top 5 so far...

From : Manchester City To : Aston Villa (Season long loan) 

Injury seemed to hinder Murphy's game time in Manchester City's league winning campaign last season so the loan move definitely makes a lot of sense. At just 20 year old Murphy is already showing a lot of potential however, with game time hard to come by at City the chance to play in a competitive Villa side is going to be super beneficial for her career progressing. City must see the potential in Murphy with this being a loan move, sending her out for valuable game time and experience rather than just selling her. Playing in the left wing position we have seen in the past just how much impact Murphy can have on the team both in attack and defence and I believe we can see Murphy become a key part of the Villa team for the upcoming season.

From : Chelsea To : Manchester City   

After the departure of Ouahabi at the end of last season a lot of people were left wondering who would fill the left back role, Katie McCabe's name was thrown around a lot however, after her signing for Chelsea this put Charles in the prime position for the move up north. This was quite a funny move with how it all played out, first you had the fans speculation, then her name was added to the players section on shirts to buy, it was quickly removed... then weeks later the announcement finally came. It is going to be interesting to see how Charles settles in up north and how she can help City retain their title. We know from her time at Chelsea and from her time in the England shirt she can provide the team with plenty of opportunities and can get back and put those all important challenges in so let's see how the season plays out for her. 

From : Manchester United To : Birmingham City

Birmingham are finally back in the top flight of English women's football and they are working on building a team to keep them up there beyond the 2026/27 season. The addition of Turner to the back line is going to massively help with the defensive aspect of their game whilst giving them a chance at scoring from set pieces. The move shocked a lot of people as Turner has been with United since day 1 however, last season things just didn't work out between player and club with Turner not getting the game time she deserved. There is definitely things going on at United that are going to impact the women's team in the long run but that is a whole post in itself, Birmingham are definitely capitalising on these issues at United though as they have got a solid defender who maybe if times weren't challenging wouldn't have been wanting the move. Turner is one of those players who gives it their all each game and could this move see her finally getting those England call ups she definitely deserves?

From : Tottenham Hotspur To : Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace have got themselves an absolutely brilliant player in Beth England who has shown that she still has plenty to give in the WSL. Palace will be hoping to avoid the drop in their first season back and with a proven goal scorer like England they are definitely improving their chances of staying in the top flight beyond the 26/27 season. England has a great footballing brain and I feel like we could see some standout performances from her throughout the season as she cements her place in her new team. Palace are definitely learning from past mistakes from previous promotions and it is going to be great to see how England helps push Palace to a solid season back in the WSL.

From Manchester United To : Chelsea

Chelsea lost Sam Kerr at the end of last season and needed to find a replacement and one player they have picked up to help with reinforcements is Malard from Manchester United. This move seemed to shock a lot of people as it seemed to come out of nowhere but looking back now it seemed to be a move that really brought the troubles at Manchester United into focus for people. Chelsea didn't cheap out on this purchase and if played in the correct position Malard could really become a valuable asset in Chelsea's push to get back to the top spot after a disappointing season last time around. United never seemed to utilise Malard to her full potential so it is possible that we may see Malard's best season in the league under Bompastor's management. This is definitely one to keep an eye on to see how the season progresses with Malard up front for Chelsea could we see her scoring more goals in her first season with Chelsea than she scored in a United shirt?

Those are the top 5 picks of the transfer window so far however, with plenty of the window left to go there is a strong possibility we could see a lot more movement before the start of the season. Keep an eye on the site as once the transfer window has ended there will be a whole new post where we look at the best transfers for every WSL team. There are also plenty of other transfer posts coming looking at the WSL2 & other leagues. If the transfers we have already had are anything to go by then we are going to be in for a very interesting and competitive season.

What are your top 5 transfers so far this transfer window for the WSL? 

Finally the 2026/27 is upon us and it is safe to say here at Edge of the Area I am are ready to make this season my biggest yet. The past few seasons have been spent on the pitch however, the boots were hung up at the start of the year and I am already to bring the site back to what it once was and beyond. 

The 2026/27 is going to see me heading back to where it all started... Bradford City Women, which means that the team may be a big focus on the site although the plan is also to add plenty of WSL content into the mix alongside the Lionesses content I used to love posting. The FAWNL & WSL are going to be the big focuses however, I am going to try my best to also keep up with all the cup competitions too, something I haven't been able to due to commitment clashes in the past. 

So here is a bit of a break down of what you can expect over here for the 2026/27 season...

Match Previews

These were a firm favourite when I did them in the past, just looking at matches ahead especially when they were derby days. So the plan for the season is to do at least one match preview a week, maybe a WSL game and a Bradford City Women game or even a Bradford City Women game and a few WSL games, I just need to find a way to do these especially when it comes to the WSL. I am hoping to do midweek games too rather than just weekends to keep content flowing.

Match Reports

Match reports are always my favourites and are where it all started for Edge of the Area so it is only right these make a comeback. The plan for the season is a report on all the games I watch... whether it is a Bradford City game in person or a WSL on TV the site is going to be filled with match reports by the end of the season.

Interviews

The interviews are back and I already have plenty of them lined up to kick start the season. I am hoping that there will be an interview piece go up each month but we shall see how that one goes. The interviews will be with people from all levels of the game so keep your eyes out for who I chat to throughout the season.

Opinion Pieces

Back in 2020 opinion pieces were a big part of the site due to me being unable to attend games and then they just dropped off into the background. This season though they are back and the plan is to have one opinion piece going up each week which could literally be about anything, maybe what has happened during the weekends matches, transfers or so much more.

Football shirts

It is no secret that I absolutely love football shirts as they have always been a big part of the site and social media so there is definitely going to be a lot of football shirt content coming this season which means I can add more into my collection whilst claiming 'it's for content'. I need to work out a plan of what sort of football shirt content to add but there will be plenty over the course of the season.

Fact Files

Fact files are something I have wanted to do for the longest time on here however, I have never really had time to piece these together as they do take a lot of work to put together with research, fact checking and so much more. I am hoping to do a few fact files each month as I know that with everything else going on one a week may be a tough ask but this could be the start of something for sure.

The site is so back which means that the busy weekends and late nights are back but it is all going to be worth it and I am super excited to be back creating for Edge of the Area once more. Now let's see what the season has in store.

 

We recently saw the 3rd installment of the World Sevens Football series in Brentford and it is safe to say that the tournament was a hit bring a different side of the Women's game to England. The 3rd installment brought the World Seven's to England for the first time with WSL teams previously heading out to Portugal to attend the tournament against teams from various different leagues, this time though with the tournament on home soil the focus was on the 2025/26 WSL teams where 8 of them stepped up for the 3 day fast paced action. Originally the thought of seeing these teams face each other again after watching a season of match ups didn't appeal however, after one game it was clear that this was going to be totally different.

With these games being 7 a side on a much smaller pitch the game was a much faster pace to normal with players not having as much space and as much time on the ball as usually. Games were also just 30 minutes each with 15 minutes being played each half, so a lot needed to happen in a short period and they definitely made the minutes count with some very high scoring games. What was also interesting was to see how players coped with the smaller goals, again a noticeable difference from the usual league games but the players seemed to cope well with all the changes. There were also rolling subs in the tournament which again was great to watch. All the substitutes would be lined up at the side of the pitch holding bibs to swap in and out easily, sometimes just one or two would run off however, sometimes it was a whole outfield change... it was a bit like watching the ice hockey with this element but it had you keeping your eyes on the pitch at all times to see who was on or off. At the end of the game if it was a draw the teams dropped to 5 a side until a winner was determined, making it harder for teams as a bit more space was created but again it was still very fun to watch.

It was great to see how players adapted to the smaller sided games however, it was outside of the games that seemed to capture the audiences. The whole tournament had a great atmosphere in the stands, a DJ was playing throughout and even in breaks of play you saw the players having a little dance a long, just a bit of fun after a long season. The atmosphere never dropped and only seemed to get better and better as the competition progressed. The real highlight of the tournament though was the walkouts from teams before the games. This really got everyone involved and there really should have been added points for the best walkouts, each team got creative and as the competition progressed you could see players getting more comfortable with the antics. We had Sonia Bompastor being held in the air by the Chelsea team, Marc Skinner being Bad Bunny with the team and staff dancing alongside him & then you had plenty of acrobatics. Possibly the best walkout though was Everton's funeral with Hannah Blundell in a coffin (a suitcase) pop out in a Man Utd shirt before switching to an Everton shirt who she was actually representing in the Seven's, what made this great was this happened as they played against Man Utd who all laughed along with the walkout. It was great to see whole teams coming together having fun, even the referees got involved which was brilliant to see a different side to them on the pitch.

The best way to describe the Seven's is that is was a bit like on of those preseason tournaments you take part in as a kid, where you spend all day on and off the pitch having a laugh with your teammates, it was a breathe of fresh air really to see the fun side of the game come back for a few days and see those players really enjoying themselves. The tournament seems to have reached a new audience too granted a few people were a bit outspoken about it making a mockery of the game and why women shouldn't be treated the same however, a lot of people saw the intent of the tournament for what it was and really got on board with it. People who normally have nothing to do with the women's game were actually sharing content like the walkouts saying how fun it looked. I feel like whilst Chelsea may have been the overall competition winner it was the format that was the overall winner bringing in a good audience thanks to social media and Sky's coverage. 

Going forward it really would be great if we could get this tournament over in England more often, maybe yearly but have it in different places each year to get more of the country involved. That been said the countdown is already on for the next installment.