Women's football in England

::"For more in depth, albeit general information see Football in England."While women's football has been played in England for over a century, it has only been in the 1990s that the game has seen a large increase in female players, as well as in female spectators, culminating in England hosting the Women's European Championships in 2005.

In the period from early in the First World War until the Football Association's ban on women playing football on the grounds of its affiliates in 1922 (which lasted for 40 years) women's football was very popular and a true rival to the men's game. One match featuring the Dick, Kerr's Ladies team from Preston, played at Goodison Park, Liverpool on Boxing Day 1920, attracted a crowd of 53,000 with another 10,000 - 15,000 reported turned away because the ground was full.

Today, the FA runs directly the top women's competitions. The most significant national competition is the national cup, the FA Women's Cup, followed by the top national league, the FA Women's Premier League National Division. The Premier League has recently increased in importance because its winner is the only English representative allowed in Europe. Women's football also has its own Premier League Cup, limited to the teams in the Premier League and the regional second divisions. To promote women's football, the FA allows cup finals to be held at various men's Premier League/Football League stadia throughout the country (as opposed to men's finals which are usually held at the national stadiums); for the 2006-07 season, the League Cup final took place at Scunthorpe United's Glanford Park, and the FA Cup final will take place at Nottingham Forest's City Ground.

League system

:"See main article FA Women's Premier League"The national league system in women's football in England is the FA Women's Premier League. This is split into two levels: at the top level is the FA Women's Premier League National Division, with relegation to two equal leagues below this: the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division and the FA Women's Premier League Southern Division. Teams in these three divisions compete in the Premier League Cup.

Below the Premier League lie the four Combination Leagues, the South West, South East, Midland and Northern Combinations and below these are eight regional leagues. Below the regional leagues are the county leagues. [ [http://makingwebsites.co.uk/swcombo/history.html History of the South West Combination] from southwestcombination.co.uk. Retrieved 20 November 2006.]

As in the men's game, some Welsh women's football clubs compete in the English pyramid. The most successful are Cardiff City and the now defunct Barry Town, both of which have played in the Women's Premiership.

The women's pyramid

ee also

*Football in England
*List of women's football clubs in England and Wales
*England women's national football team

References

External links

* [http://www.femalesoccer.net FemaleSOCCER.net - Girl's and women's football]
* [http://www.womens-football.co.uk Directory of Women's and Girl's football Teams in the UK]
* [http://thepyramid.info/women/structure.htm The English Women's Pyramid at thepyramid.info]