Burton Albion’s Pirelli Stadium will host the FA Women’s National League play-offs over the early May bank holiday weekend.
In order to retain divisions of 12 teams across Tiers 2, 3 and 4 for the 2026/27 season, this season sees a one-off change to the promotion system in The FA WNL ahead of next season’s expansion of the Barclays Women’s Super League. Subject to clubs achieving WSL requirements, three teams are hoping to be promoted to the Barclays WSL2; the winners of the Southern Premier Division and Northern Premier Division alongside the winner of the Tier 3 play-off.
With The FA Women’s National League season finishing on Sunday 26 April 2026, teams across Tiers 3 and 4 are still battling it out for a place in the play-offs, underlining just how competitive this year’s campaign has been. With minimal points separating several sides in the standings, the play-offs are set to produce competitive and high-stakes encounters, where fans can expect three thrilling matches, entertainment on- and off-the-pitch, and a celebration of the Women’s National League.
Before the Tier 3 play-off takes place on Monday 4th May, the Pirelli Stadium will also host the Tier 4 play-offs on Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd May. The winners of these two ties will be promoted from Tier 4 to Tier 3, alongside the four division winners, subject to meeting Tier 3 requirements. All three play-offs will kick-off at 1pm.
Fixture Line-Up for the play-off weekend:
● Saturday 2nd May: Division One Midlands vs Division One North
● Sunday 3rd May: Division One South East vs Division One South West
● Monday 4th May: Northern Premier Division vs Southern Premier Division
Nick Frith, The FA’s Head of Women’s Football Pyramid thefa.com: “The FA WNL is continuing to grow each year, and this season has delivered some of the most competitive campaigns across all six leagues in recent memory. The three-play off finals at the Pirelli Stadium in May will provide the perfect stage to bring it to a close.
“We look forward to welcoming six Women’s National League clubs, their fans, and the public to the Pirelli Stadium over the Early May bank holiday weekend. We’re expecting three high-quality, fiercely contested finals that reflect the standard and excitement we’ve seen all year.”
Tickets for the play-offs will go on sale in due course, and will be available to buy for just £10 for adults and £5 for concessions, with additional fan activations taking place around the fixtures.
