SBS SWPL Is Back: Still Premier League But Better Than Ever

Glasgow City were champions for a record twelfth consecutive year in 2018, Hibernian won both cups for a third season running and Motherwell took the SWPL 2 title with an unprecedented points haul, and the 2019 season launch at Hampden Park found Scottish women’s football in an expectant mood. Scottish Women’s Football executive officer Fiona McIntyre explains the new entry criteria as a long club consultation aimed at raising standards, keeping the best players in Scotland and drawing spectators and media. She is clear that the sums operating in the FA WSL make it no model to lift wholesale, only principles worth taking. Removing relegation from SWPL 2 came from a club proposal and passed unanimously, giving clubs asked to invest in infrastructure some stability, with a ten-team second tier planned for 2020.