WSL’s Waffley Invasion

Sophie Lawson’s light-hearted survey of the Dutch and Belgian influx into the WSL notes that seven arrivals in the summer mean the league could now field a full Belgian-Dutch starting XI: van Veenendaal, Van De Putte, Kerkdijk, Worm, Biesmans, Janssen, Bruinenburg, van de Donk, Munsterman, Miedema and Daniels. Ten of the eleven are internationals and six have played for FC Twente. Bristol City lead the charge with three Belgians plus Danique Kerkdijk, while Everton took Marthe Munsterman and Siri Worm and Sunderland signed Dominique Bruinenburg. A history section covers Twente’s dominance, the short-lived BeNe League joint venture and Belgium’s new Super League, before contrasting the Dutch preference for lateral, space-finding football with Belgium’s more physical tradition. The piece closes on both nations’ World Cup qualifying positions and is punctuated by a run of deliberately silly true-or-false questions.