Kitman Labs are to provide every Barclays WSL and BWSL2 club with cutting-edge technology to enhance player welfare, medical care, coaching, training and development.
Kitman Labs will provide Performance Medicine, Performance Optimization, and Coaching & Development Solutions in iP: Intelligence Platform for both senior and academy squads. The technology — already used by some of the most prestigious leagues and governing bodies in world sport including the Premier League and EFL — will give clubs a unified, data-driven approach to managing the health, performance and progression of their players.
A Strategic Commitment to Raising Standards
WSL Football’s decision to work with Kitman Labs ensures that all clubs have access to gold standard infrastructure and every player and staff member in the League will benefit from the same elite-level system, creating a consistent and elevated standard of care and performance support.
Initially introduced in 2018 to standardize injury surveillance and facilitate medical record sharing between clubs and the Football Association for England duty, the platform has evolved into a comprehensive performance ecosystem. Today it enables:
- Longitudinal Player Care – Continuous tracking of player health and wellness over seasons, not just single campaigns.
- Rehabilitation & Injury Prevention – Streamlined workflows for medical teams to document, manage and share treatment plans.
- Optimized Coaching & Training – Integrated performance data to inform training loads, tactical preparation, and player development strategies.
- Secure Player Data Movement – Seamless transfer of relevant information when players move between clubs or join national team camps, reducing duplication and supporting faster decision-making.
- Evidence-Led League Insights – Aggregated, anonymized data analysis to inform league-wide policy and enhance welfare protocols
Unlocking Benefits at Every Level
For players, the system ensures that their welfare is supported by the most advanced medical, performance, and coaching intelligence available, no matter which club they represent.
For clubs, it eliminates the financial barrier to implementing a league-leading platform, while providing tools to optimize preparation, monitor workload, and coordinate care across departments.
For the League, it delivers a unified view of the health, performance, and development of players across the competition — enabling the WSL to safeguard welfare standards, monitor trends, and invest in targeted initiatives, such as research into menstrual health and other female-specific performance factors.
Andy Hudson, Performance Support Manager, WSL, said: “For us, this is about more than technology—it’s about equipping our clubs with the tools to answer their most pressing performance questions and solve real problems on and off the pitch. We are proud to be the first women’s league in the world to implement this type of innovation at scale. This isn’t about parity with the men’s game—it’s about setting a new benchmark for the game itself. We want to show what’s possible when you invest in ambition, put players first, and embrace solutions that elevate the entire ecosystem.”
“This is more than just another technology partnership—it’s a groundbreaking moment in women’s football,” said Stephen Smith, Founder & CEO of Kitman Labs. “The WSL is showing the ambition and leadership needed for women’s sport to not only keep pace with but often surpass many of the leading men’s leagues. Too often, we see men’s competitions with greater resources still trailing behind in adopting the right solutions for their players. What makes this partnership so special is that the WSL is setting a new standard for the entire industry—refusing to use budget as an excuse and instead proving that doing the right thing by players is always possible.”
