WOMEN’S FOOTBALL WEEKLY

The five-minute read for dedicated-ish fans of women’s football.

This week, it’s all about the new kids on the block – from Freya Godfrey to baby Felix. Plus, a quick Champions League round-up, Alex Scott talks girls, and Rose Lavelle takes centre stage. Enjoy!

– Jo, founder of Twentytwo

🚨ICYMI

Top Headlines

🦁 London City Lionesses’ exciting young forward, Freya Godfrey, has earned her first Lionesses call-up for the upcoming friendlies against Ghana and China. She’s been in the England U23s for a while, but her recent form for LCL makes this a well-deserved step-up. Fingers crossed she gets some game time. Full squad list for hte friendlies here.

🌍 FIFA’s 2028 Club World Cup plans are causing a bit of concern among supporter groups. Thirty-four of them have signed an open letter to the FA and WSL to raise concerns about the impact on travelling fans and player welfare.

📢 Referee Lisa Benn has said she was shoved by a senior coach during VAR training, and then dropped from FIFA’s list after speaking up. It’s led to an employment tribunal, which is still ongoing.

✍️ Newcastle United has appointed ex-Northern Ireland head coach Tanya Oxtoby as their new manager in the hope that she can guide them to WSL promotion.

🤩 Temwa Chawinga has made NWSL history as the first back-to-back MVP winner. She scored 15 goals for Kansas City to win a second consecutive NWSL Golden Boot award.​

📅 The NWSL might move to a summer-to-spring schedule, and although the change would mean the US league matches the global calendar, challenges like extreme winter weather could be a big issue.

🚀 The UEFA Women's Europa Cup quarterfinals have been drawn for February 2026

⚽ CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - RESULTS ROUND-UP

• Wolfsburg 5-2 Manchester United (Highlights)
  Defensive errors were the undoing of United. They remain in the top five, but they won’t stay there for long if this slump continues.

• Arsenal 2-1 Real Madrid (Highlights)
  This was a must-win game to keep Arsenal away from the elimination zone with two games to go.

• Chelsea 1-1 Barcelona (Highlights)
  Ellie Carpenter’s goal was spectacular. Chelsea had clearly learned lessons from past Barca encounters and could have gone on to win if they hadn’t wasted their opportunities.

🎥 Every Women's Champions League Goal From Matchday 4

⚽ SUBWAY LEAGUE CUP

The group stages of the cup are over, the knockouts are set for December, but who is through to the next stage?

• Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all enter the competition at this stage. Essentially, they got out of doing the group stages because they’re in the Champions League.

• Whoever finished first in their group guaranteed qualification. That means Manchester City, Liverpool, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, and Tottenham Hotspur have all made the quarter-finals.

• Crystal Palace are the only WSL2 team left in the mix.

The draw for the quarter and semi-finals will take place tomorrow (25 November) at 6pm on the WSL’s TikTok channel.

🎥 Watch this if you only click one thing: Beth Hepple scores a crazy free kick for Durham against Sunderland

🇺🇸 NWSL CHAMPIONSHIP

Gotham FC won the 2025 NWSL Championship, beating Washington Spirit 1–0 thanks to an 80th-minute strike from Rose Lavelle. It was a brilliant finish and the decisive moment in a tight final. Gotham might have come in as the underdogs, but they handled the pressure better, took their chance, and deserved their second title.

Watch the highlights

📚 WHAT WE’RE READING

→ It is still not enough just to play women’s football. You need to sell yourself within it – An interesting look at the growth of player commercial opportunities in the women’s game –  The Athletic via Yahoo!sport

→ Counter Pressed Meets: Nikki Doucet – The WSL’s CEO answers big questions about progress so far, and what the future might hold for the WSL – Counter Pressed (video)

HELP US MAKE FOOTBALL BETTER…

Tell us about your experience of buying match tickets and attending games

👟 KIT DROP

ART OF x Guinness returns with a nostalgic 90s-inspired jersey, and honestly… Guinness and football were made for each other. Moody, dark gradients, gold detailing, and that little pop of red piping. It’s going straight on our Christmas list. Get yours here

Barcelona’s fourth kit has landed and, at first glance, we genuinely thought Crystal Palace had released a funky side-project. But no — it’s Barça’s new fourth shirt, a bold “football is art” concept nodding to the 2005 Clásico win. It’s graphic and strangely compelling. We like. Available now

PUMA’s new Unleashed Pack brings fresh updates to the Future 9, King and Ultra silos. Sleeker uppers, sharper touch zones, and strong colourways. Worth a peek if you’re into the finer details of boot engineering. Explore the pack

🛋️ DITCH THE SOFA

Upcoming Events

BallerFC: England Lionesses v China + Queer Cxntry
Sat 29 Nov 2025 5:00 PM - 1:00 AM
Signature Brew, Blackhorse Rd, E17 5QJ
Free tickets

Women’s Football Fair 2 | Sunday 30 November
Whether you're a player, fan, or simply curious, this is the perfect day to celebrate the power and passion of the women's game.
Hockley Social Club,60 Hampton St, Birmingham B19 3LU
£5 General Admission Tickets – Get yours here

Is there a women’s football event happening near you? Give us a heads-up

📺 WEEKLY WATCHLIST

What We’re Watching

Your what-not-to-miss viewing guide (BST)

UEFA Women’s Nations League
Friday 28 November

• Final Leg 1: Germany vs Spain, 19:30

• Third-place play-off Leg 1: France vs Sweden, 20:10

International friendlies

• England vs China: Saturday 29 November, 17:30, ITV1

• England vs Ghana: Tuesday 2 December, 19:00, ITV4

⚡️ Our favourite new format, World Sevens, is back on 5-7 December. TNT Sports will be launching the 7v7 tournament in America, but the rest of us can catch it on DAZN.​

👀 FAVE FINDS

I’m a Celebrity fave moment: Alex Scott talking about her relationship with Jess Glynne, and Ruby Wax hoping for an invite to the wedding. Watch here

Chelsea’s Guro Reiten announced the birth of her son Felix. Congratulations to Guro and partner Julie Nilssen.

See you next week!

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