2020–21 FA WSL
Tenth season of the top English women's association football league
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The 2020–21 FA WSL season (also known as the Barclays FA Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons) was the tenth edition of the FA Women's Super League (WSL) since it was formed in 2010.[1] It was the third season after the rebranding of the four highest levels in English women's football.
| Season | 2020–21 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 5 September 2020 – 9 May 2021 |
| Champions | Chelsea 4th title |
| Relegated | Bristol City |
| Champions League | Chelsea Manchester City Arsenal |
| Matches | 132 |
| Goals | 413 (3.13 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Sam Kerr (21 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Chelsea 9–0 Bristol City]br>(13 September 2020) |
| Biggest away win | West Ham United 1–9 Arsenal (12 September 2020) |
| Highest scoring | West Ham United 1–9 Arsenal (12 September 2020) |
| Longest winning run | 12 matches Manchester City |
| Longest unbeaten run | 16 matches Manchester City |
| Longest winless run | 13 matches Birmingham City |
| Longest losing run | 5 matches Bristol City |
← 2019–20 2021–22 → | |
From the 2020–21 season, the FA WSL was given three Champions League places per season, increased from the previous two.[2]
Chelsea were the defending champions, having been awarded the 2019–20 title on a points-per-game basis following the curtailment of the season due to COVID-19 pandemic in England.[3][4] They became the first team since Liverpool in 2014 to defend a WSL title.
Teams
Twelve teams contested the FA WSL this season. At the end of the previous season, Liverpool were relegated while Aston Villa were promoted.[5]
| Team | Location | Ground | Capacity | 2019–20 season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | Borehamwood | Meadow Park | 4,502 | 3rd |
| Aston Villa | Walsall | Bescot Stadium | 11,000 | WC, 1st |
| Birmingham City | Solihull | Damson Park | 3,050 | 11th |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Crawley | Broadfield Stadium | 6,134 | 9th |
| Bristol City | Bath | Twerton Park | 3,528 | 10th |
| Chelsea | Kingston upon Thames | Kingsmeadow | 4,850 | 1st |
| Everton | Liverpool | Walton Hall Park | 2,200 | 6th |
| Manchester City | Manchester | Academy Stadium | 7,000 | 2nd |
| Manchester United | Leigh | Leigh Sports Village | 12,000 | 4th |
| Reading | Reading | Madejski Stadium | 24,161 | 5th |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Canons Park | The Hive Stadium | 6,500 | 7th |
| West Ham United | Dagenham | Victoria Road | 6,078 | 8th |
Stadium changes
Four teams changed home ground prior to the start of the season: Reading relocated from Adams Park in High Wycombe to the Madejski Stadium, home of the team's male affiliate since it was constructed in 1998.[6] Newly-promoted Aston Villa signed a two-year deal with Walsall to play their home games at Bescot Stadium, moving from the Trevor Brown Memorial Ground[7] and West Ham United signed a one-year deal with Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. to play at Victoria Road for the season having previously played at the club's Rush Green training ground stadium.[8] In a bid to enable increased attendances amid COVID-19 restrictions and social distancing measures, Bristol City announced they were moving from the 1,500 capacity Stoke Gifford Stadium in Filton which had been purpose-built by the club in 2011 ahead of the first WSL season, to Twerton Park, an 3,528 capacity stadium home to Bath City.[9][10]
Personnel and kits
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal |  Joe Montemurro |
 Kim Little |
Adidas | Fly Emirates |
| Aston Villa |  Marcus Bignot (interim) |
 Marisa Ewers |
Kappa | Cazoo |
| Birmingham City | Carla Ward |
Christie Murray |
Nike | Biffa |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Hope Powell |
Danielle Buet |
Nike | American Express |
| Bristol City | Matt Beard (maternity cover) |
Jasmine Matthews |
Hummel | Yeo Valley |
| Chelsea | Emma Hayes |
 Magdalena Eriksson |
Nike | Three |
| Everton | Willie Kirk |
Lucy Graham |
Hummel | MegaFon |
| Manchester City |  Gareth Taylor |
Steph Houghton |
Puma | Etihad Airways |
| Manchester United | Casey Stoney |
Katie Zelem |
Adidas | Chevrolet |
| Reading | Kelly Chambers |
Natasha Harding |
Macron | YLD |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Rehanne Skinner |
Josie Green |
Nike | AIA |
| West Ham United |  Olli Harder |
Gilly Flaherty |
Umbro | Betway |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester City |  Alan Mahon (interim) |
End of interim period | 2 February 2020 | Pre-season | Gareth Taylor |
28 May 2020[11] |
| Birmingham City | Charlie Baxter (interim) |
End of interim period | 3 March 2020 | Carla Ward |
13 August 2020[12] | |
| West Ham United | Matt Beard |
Mutual consent[13] | 19 November 2020 | 9th | Billy Stewart (interim) |
19 November 2020 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Karen Hills Juan Carlos Amorós |
Sacked[14] | 19 November 2020 | 11th | Rehanne Skinner |
19 November 2020[15] |
| West Ham United | Billy Stewart (interim) |
End of interim period | 23 December 2020 | 10th | Olli Harder |
23 December 2020[16] |
| Bristol City | Tanya Oxtoby |
Maternity leave | 15 January 2021 | 12th | Matt Beard (interim) |
15 January 2021[17] |
| Aston Villa | Gemma Davies |
Retained head coach role | 25 January 2021 | 11th | Marcus Bignot (interim) |
25 January 2021[18] |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea (C) | 22 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 69 | 10 | +59 | 57 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Manchester City | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 65 | 13 | +52 | 55 | Qualification for the Champions League second round |
| 3 | Arsenal | 22 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 63 | 15 | +48 | 48 | Qualification for the Champions League first round |
| 4 | Manchester United | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 44 | 20 | +24 | 47 | |
| 5 | Everton | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 39 | 30 | +9 | 32 | |
| 6 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 21 | 41 | −20 | 27 | |
| 7 | Reading | 22 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 25 | 41 | −16 | 24 | |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 18 | 41 | −23 | 20 | |
| 9 | West Ham United | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 21 | 39 | −18 | 15 | |
| 10 | Aston Villa | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 47 | −32 | 15 | |
| 11 | Birmingham City | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 44 | −29 | 14[a] | |
| 12 | Bristol City (R) | 22 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 18 | 72 | −54 | 12 | Relegation to the Championship |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Results
- Independent tribunal awarded three points to Tottenham after Birmingham failed to fulfil the fixture due to a player shortage. No scoreline was specified.
Season statistics
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[20] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sam Kerr |
Chelsea | 21 |
| 2 |  Vivianne Miedema |
Arsenal | 18 |
| 3 | Fran Kirby |
Chelsea | 16 |
| 4 | Caitlin Foord |
Arsenal | 10 |
| Chloe Kelly |
Manchester City | ||
| Ellen White |
Manchester City | ||
| 7 |  Pernille Harder |
Chelsea | 9 |
| Ella Toone |
Manchester United | ||
| 9 | Caroline Weir |
Manchester City | 8 |
| Inessa Kaagman |
Brighton & Hove Albion |
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets[21] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ann-Katrin Berger |
Chelsea | 12 |
| 2 | Ellie Roebuck |
Manchester City | 11 |
| 3 | Mary Earps |
Manchester United | 10 |
| 4 | Lydia Williams |
Arsenal | 7 |
| 5 | Sandy MacIver |
Everton | 6 |
| Megan Walsh |
Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
| Lisa Weiß |
Aston Villa | ||
| 8 | Hannah Hampton |
Birmingham City | 4 |
 Manuela Zinsberger |
Arsenal | ||
| 10 | Courtney Brosnan |
West Ham United | 3 |
| Grace Moloney |
Reading |
Awards
Monthly awards
| Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Player | Club | ||
| September | Hope Powell |
Brighton & Hove Albion | Jill Roord |
Arsenal | [22] |
| October | Carla Ward |
Birmingham City | Vivianne Miedema |
Arsenal | [23] |
| November | Casey Stoney |
Manchester United |  Tobin Heath |
Manchester United | [24] |
| December | Casey Stoney |
Manchester United | Leah Galton |
Manchester United | [25] |
| January | Emma Hayes |
Chelsea | Fran Kirby |
Chelsea | [26] |
| February | Hope Powell |
Brighton & Hove Albion | Lucy Bronze |
Manchester City | [27] |
| March | Joe Montemurro |
Arsenal | Lotte Wubben-Moy |
Arsenal | [28] |
| April | Joe Montemurro |
Arsenal | Sam Kerr |
Chelsea | [29][30] |
Annual awards
| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Barclays FA WSL Player of the Season | Fran Kirby[31] |
Chelsea |
| Barclays FA WSL Manager of the Season | Emma Hayes[31] |
Chelsea |
| PFA Players' Player of the Year | Fran Kirby[32] |
Chelsea |
| PFA Young Player of the Year | Lauren Hemp[32] |
Manchester City |
| FWA Footballer of the Year | Fran Kirby[33] |
Chelsea |
| PFA Team of the Year[34] | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Ann-Katrin Berger (Chelsea) | |||||||||||
| Defenders |  Maren Mjelde (Chelsea) |
Leah Williamson (Arsenal) |
Magdalena Eriksson (Chelsea) |
Katie McCabe (Arsenal) | ||||||||
| Midfielders | Caroline Weir (Manchester City) |
Sam Mewis (Manchester City) | ||||||||||
| Forwards | Chloe Kelly (Manchester City) |
Fran Kirby (Chelsea) |
Lauren Hemp (Manchester City) |
Sam Kerr (Chelsea) | ||||||||