“I’m playing in the FA Cup at the weekend.”
I haven’t told many people in my life about playing in the Women’s FA Cup. Family, friends, colleagues, they all heard about it. I’m still talking about it four months after my seventh-tier team South London Women were knocked out of the Premier League by two-time champions Fulham.
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England’s biggest domestic knockout competition is open to clubs from all seven tiers of the women’s football pyramid. The top league is the Women’s Super League, a fully professional league made up of teams such as Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City. The seventh tier consists of amateur county leagues, with Premier League teams qualifying for the FA Cup.
The Women’s FA Cup was launched in 1970 and was run by the voluntary Women’s Football Association (WFA) until 1992 when the Football Association (FA) took over. The Women’s FA Cup is still an emerging competition, especially compared to the men’s competition. It is the only competition in women’s football that offers prize money to lower-division clubs. There are three FA competitions in the men’s competition that offer prize money: the FA Cup, as well as the FA Cup and FA Vase for non-league clubs.
While prize money has a big impact on lower-tier teams, it is not the main motivator for grassroots players. It’s just about getting a chance to play in a prestigious competition.
“Playing in the FA Cup is a real pinnacle of football. I never thought I would be playing in the FA Cup,” said Ruth Auerbach, one of my team-mates at South London Women’s Football Club.
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“Every game is special. You can feel that throughout the team and throughout the club. It’s also an opportunity to come up against serious opponents in other leagues and find out that we can hold our own, and we’ve played against higher-level teams many times.”
However, these special opportunities may soon be a thing of the past, with the FA threatening to take them away from seventh-tier players.
In January, “following a strategic review of the game”, the FA held an online meeting to make “a range of recommendations” to attendees, who included representatives from fifth, sixth and seventh tier clubs across the country.
The meeting was titled “FA Cup Consultations” but included presentations detailing proposals for the round of 32 knockout rounds and seedings, with no mention of plans to limit participation before attendees asked questions about possible changes to entry requirements.
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The Greater London Women’s Football League (GLWFL), which plays for South London Women’s first team, has contacted club secretaries and chairs of all county leagues to determine the extent of consultation with affected stakeholders. At the time of writing, no league or club representatives have been involved in any consultation specifically on the restricted entry proposals, according to responses from 17 of the 35 county league contacts. In fact, it was the first time many people heard from GLWFL.
Despite insisting it had held “consultations” with affected stakeholders, the FA failed to communicate clearly or provide reasons for the proposed changes. Those most directly affected by entry-level scrutiny are left in the dark.
Fifty-six years on from the ban on women’s football, women’s football is still at a critical stage of development and is still recovering in terms of infrastructure, playing opportunities, priority pitch and facility bookings and the professionalization of the game.
Developing the women’s game is something the FA has always been committed to, not least as part of the legacy of England’s back-to-back successful European Championship successes. Restricting participation in the FA Cup will create barriers to women participating in the sport.
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There are approximately 180 teams in the fifth and sixth tiers, and approximately 335 teams in the seventh tier of the Premier League. Fewer than 40 people participated in the January conference call. This turnout represents only a fraction of the clubs and players at the bottom of the women’s football pyramid.
On Thursday, the Football Association announced that it would postpone the planned implementation timetable for the 2026-27 season. At an online meeting of county league representatives hosted by GLWFL that day, participants once again expressed their dissatisfaction with the communication from the Football Association.
The FA said in a statement that they “listened to the feedback” and “understand what the game means for clubs, players and fans across the pyramid.” Final proposals were originally due to be submitted to the FA board in April, but will now be submitted at a later date.
This is welcome news in the short term, especially as it provides Tier 7 stakeholders with the opportunity to actively participate in the conversation now. Hope to have more time for more communication.
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The FA Cup brings my club community together in a way that my club had never experienced before last season. When we made our debut at the competition, club members and friends organized a logo-making night where we booked coaches to travel as far away as Kent and the south coast – 90 and 130 miles round trip respectively – and sang songs designed for each team member at pre-match brunch.
When we were drawn against Fulham in the first round of the season, voices started popping up in our WhatsApp group: wishing we could play at Craven Cottage, asking for enough balls and suggesting the team wear the same training kit so we looked more professional.
We were a bit optimistic about the idea of playing at a Premier League stadium, but matchdays at Fulham’s training ground, Motspool Park, were one of the best experiences I’ve ever had as a player. It may not have been my greatest performance – I had ten touches as a lone striker, four of which came from kick-offs – but I was proud to be out on the pitch with my teammates in an FA Cup tie against a third-tier plus side.
We knew we were going to have a tough afternoon, but as our team-mate Casey said in the crowd before kick-off: “What if?” That’s the fun of the FA Cup isn’t it? Able to dream. This is what sport is all about.
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Although that dream didn’t last long (we conceded twice in the first ten minutes), we were not intimidated or discouraged. How could we do this with 100 fans in the stands cheering every time we touched the ball?, Waving handmade cardboard signs and singing our names?
The FA’s current proposals would mean the stories and experiences of amateur players who provide the game with its extraordinary magic will be lost. Club development will also be hampered.
Prize money from the Women’s FA Cup is a vital revenue stream that can help some clubs move up the pyramid while keeping others afloat.
Many clubs rely on sponsorship, fundraising and membership. At South London Women’s Football Club our total spend per season is around £30,000 and this figure is increasing every year. We pay an annual club membership fee of £150 per player and a match substitution fee of £6. By qualifying for the first round of the FA Cup in 2024-25 and 2025-26, we have benefited significantly from prize money, receiving over £20,000 in prize money – a huge sum for an independent, not-for-profit club with no home ground and run by volunteers. This means we can continue to grow as a club and provide opportunities for more women to take part in the sport.
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For those involved in grassroots women’s football, the FA Cup is more than just a trophy and a Wembley final. This is an opportunity to be part of something bigger.
It’s traveling to a new venue, perhaps to a stadium for the first time, and testing itself against different opponents.
It’s your teammate’s two-year-old son watching his mom and soccer aunty play in a match involving international players.
It could convince friends and colleagues who aren’t too keen on women’s football to give the sport a try.
It’s an experience you’ve never had before with a team coach singing songs about the driver and gifting him with a case of cider as he takes a detour to the local pub on the way home.
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This is community.
This is opportunity.
It’s those ten touches…and dreaming about the next one.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Premier League, Football, Women’s Football
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