There’s no question that the landscape of the Barclays Women’s Super League is a substantially different picture to what it was a decade ago, such has been the growth of the women’s game and its top flight in this country, and there have been several different reasons for its rapid upward trajectory. Whether it’s the success of the national team, the connection between the fans and its players or the quality of football that is now being produced throughout both the BWSL and BWSL 2, all have contributed to seeing the league become a place that the best players want to come and play.
So much so, the level at the top of the BWSL has never been as competitive. However, the business end has become so drenched in quality that the title has been dominated by the same three teams since Liverpool triumphed in 2014. For a large portion of that time since, it’s been Chelsea – particularly under the guidance of Emma Hayes – that have been the irremovable beast conquering the BWSL. Interrupted only by Arsenal in 2019 and Manchester City in both 2016 and last season’s victory. However, the three big hitters could soon have some new competition going into the new campaign, thanks to the continued roar of the London City Lionesses.
The Lionesses are already a unique entity in the current make-up of the BWSL. Of the 14 teams competing in the 2026-27 season, they are the only fully independent BWSL club, not associated with an already established name in English football. Originally an offshoot of Millwall Lionesses, the club was bought by Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang in 2023, and her investment has made an immediate impact on the London City Lionesses’ story – and the women’s game in general.
For it’s a model that is seldom seen in the modern women’s game. In something akin to men’s football with Jack Walker at Blackburn in the early 90s or more recent investments in Chelsea and Manchester City, Kang’s involvement has transformed the new kid on the block, and there’s no doubt that they mean business.
Promotion was ensured at the end of Kang’s first full season as owner, with their title-deciding game becoming the first second-tier women’s match to be broadcast live on Sky TV and YouTube. And, after a baptism of fire in their first BWSL games - they shipped nine goals in games against Arsenal and Manchester United – the club settled into life as a top-flight name.
Aided by big-name arrivals such as Nikita Parris, Danielle van de Donk and the league’s most expensive footballer in Grace Geyoro, the Lionesses finished a credible 6th in the first-ever BWSL season, even taking a point off champions Chelsea in one of their most impressive displays of the season. Yet, Kang showed her ruthless streak and desire not just to make up the numbers, by removing the manager who had taken them to new heights halfway through the season. Jocelyn Prêcheur was relieved of his duties and replaced by Eder Maestre, and it’s she who will take charge for the upcoming campaign – a campaign where the Londoners, and Kang, have upped the ante once again.
Not content with just being a BWSL club, their summer intentions have shown they are already ready to upset the balance at the top end of the division and gatecrash the title party. Their summer recruitment has been a rollcall of eyebrow-raising names that include Mary Earps’ return to England, French forward Kadidiatou Diani and the headline act in two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexa Putellas.
The signing of Putellas in particular is a massive statement of intent. Sure, the BWSL has been lucky enough to see some of the game’s greatest grace the league in the guise of names like Vivianne Miedema, Alex Morgan and Sam Kerr, but Putellas feels like a game-changing moment. A sit-up-and-take-notice signing that will propel the club to a new level, but also put further eyes on the league who want to see the best players and attract more fans.
Kang has been keen to create that draw, too. Her approach may sometimes be divisive, but it’s difficult to deny it’s been for the benefit of the women’s game. Not only by investing in the squad and a new training facility but also by making the matchday experience all about the fans, with their efforts rewarded last year by earning the Best Fan Engagement prize at the 2026 Women's Football Awards.
"The club have done a fantastic job at creating an environment that's not just about the match,” Donna Jones, a London City Lioness season ticket holder, recently explained. "They have different food options, a T-shirt cannon, foam fingers, player signings, a spin-the-wheel at half-time - there is so much. "They are really trying to grow the fanbase."
With a happy fan base, a long-term plan and a squad boasting the best names in Europe, it feels like everything is in place at Hayes Lane for the London City Lionesses to continue their rise. Now the only thing missing is major honours as they challenge the BWSL’s already established. But given what a roaring success the Lionesses have already been and how they’ve already broken the mould, it feels like the next stage is almost inevitable.