While the Money League evaluates football clubs based on the revenue generated, it’s important to consider broader metrics that can be used to measure business success and long-term sustainability. Commercial partners and broadcasters are recognising the elevated profile of the women’s game that is not only attracting larger audiences, but also engaging women and girls, thus expanding the addressable market of the broader football industry. The challenge for the various stakeholders is to adapt and engage with a new audience that has different wants, needs, and habits to a traditional football audience. 

It is important that the focus on revenue generated today, is paired with the growth potential to drive further investment into women’s football. As the sport grows, stakeholders need to think differently about the structures within. Is the right answer to mirror the structure of the men’s game or should investors in women’s clubs leverage the opportunity to set the future direction for the women’s game, recognising the differences in the sports, audiences, and players? This should be embraced, and whilst this analysis intends to provide a snapshot of the financial performance of women’s football it isn’t intended to underpin key business decisions around, for example, valuation, in what is currently a more nuanced environment.  

There are multiple metrics that underpin and can provide insight into the growth trajectory of women’s football across attendances, viewing audience, commercial partners, and governance. 

In England, the Women’s Super League (“WSL”) and Women’s Championship reported a cumulative attendance of over one million for the first time during the 2023/24 season. Meanwhile, a 2024 study³ ranked women's football as the fifth most attended sport in the UK for attendance, surpassing rugby league and motorsport.  

This is in part due to an increasing number of matches being hosted in main club stadia during the 2023/24 season. For example, Arsenal Women hosted six WSL matches at Emirates Stadium, setting and breaking the WSL attendance record three times during the season. 

Increased attendances have also translated into greater interest from commercial and broadcast partners. Excluding Liga F, leagues in each of the ‘big five’ European football markets currently have a title sponsor, and all have multi-year, multi-million-euro broadcast rights agreements. The WSL (Sky Sports and BBC) and Liga F (DAZN) lead the way with broadcast deals with annual values of €8.7m (due to increase to €15.2m under the new agreement commencing from 2025/26) and €7m, respectively.  

The WSL is also leveraging YouTube to expand its audience base, having named the platform as its main streaming service in July 2024. The League reported cumulative live views of over 1.5m on YouTube in the first three game-weeks of the 2024/25 season. From 2025/26, the WSL’s new domestic broadcast agreements will seek to further this audience reach, with players granted use of in game and post-game rights on social media. 

The growing profile of the sport is also reflected through pre-season tours as Arsenal Women, Chelsea Women and FC Barcelona Femení all travelled to the United States in the lead up to the 2024/25 season, competing in friendly matches with North American clubs. 

The demand for women’s football is acknowledged by various governing bodies within the sport. For example, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the UEFA Women’s Champions League finals were hosted at the Stadion Dynamo, Kyiv (2018) and Ferencváros Stadion, Budapest (2019), both with a capacity of under 25,000. However, since the 2021/22 season the finals have been hosted at the Juventus Stadium, Turin (match attendance – c.32,000), Philips Stadion, Eindhoven (c.33,000), and San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao (c.51,000). 

Increased demand for women’s club football led to the announcement of the expansion of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, a new secondary European competition, and the FIFA Women’s Club World Cup. Such changes are expected to further accelerate the professionalisation and popularisation of the women’s game. 

Women’s club analysis

For the third consecutive year FC Barcelona Femení remain top among the clubs analysed, generating €17.9m in revenue, a 26% increase from the 2022/23 season. 

Arsenal Women (€17.9m) rank a close second after recording a 64% increase in matchday and 48% rise in commercial revenue in the 2023/24 season. The club hosted more matches at the Emirates Stadium and increased both standalone and combined men’s and women’s sponsorship agreements. In the 2024/25 season, the club have announced that eight WSL and at least three UEFA Women’s Champions League fixtures will be scheduled at the Emirates Stadium, compared to six in total in 2023/24. 

The top-five is rounded off by Chelsea Women (€13.4m), Manchester United Women (€10.7m), and Real Madrid Femenino (€10.5m), all of which leveraged their historic brand appeal to generate €8.3m, €6.5m, and €8.4m in commercial revenue, respectively. 

Within the scope of our analysis, English clubs continue to lead the way in terms of the commercialisation and professionalisation of the women’s game. Of the women’s clubs analysed, eight of the top-15 were from the WSL. The new Barclays sponsorship, reported to be worth £15m a year, which is reportedly more than double the previous contract value, and broadcast agreement with Sky Sports and BBC are expected to entrench English clubs further financially at the top end of European football. 

The relative financial success of WSL clubs compared to their continental counterparts may point towards a viable alternate model for the future running of women’s leagues. As such, the Women’s Professional Leagues Limited, an independent organisation responsible for the WSL and Women’s Championship, is now demonstrably seeking to drive growth for the women’s game. However, it should be noted that unlike the top women’s leagues in Spain, France, and Germany, each club participating in the WSL during the 2024/25 season is affiliated with a men’s team competing in the English Premier League. While providing a stable financial footing and existing brand value among other synergistic benefits, overreliance on a men’s club could prove detrimental for the long-term as showcased by Reading Women, who had to forfeit their Championship license ahead of the 2024/25 season following the withdrawal of funding by the owners amid the financial troubles faced by the men’s team. 

Each of the seven non-English clubs among the top-15 participated in the group stage of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, highlighting the importance of the competition in driving broadcast revenue for clubs. The expansion of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and the introduction of a new secondary competition will likely boost visibility and competitiveness across the continent. Based on the current participant list published by UEFA, the UEFA Women’s Europa Cup will feature clubs from associations ranked eight to 24⁴ in the UEFA national coefficient rankings, thereby providing opportunities for new clubs to feature on the continental stage. 

The importance of the UEFA Women’s Champions League for European clubs outside of the big-five football markets is further highlighted by SK Brann (€2.1m), who ranked 15th in the analysis after reaching the quarter finals in 2023/24. 

Additionally, women’s football provides for a similar starting point for clubs and leagues worldwide. While not featuring among the top-15 clubs, Japanese clubs Sanfrecce Hiroshima Regina (€1.9m) and Omiya Ardija Ventus (€1.9m) reported revenue greater than at least three WSL clubs during 2023/24. This presents stakeholders in the women’s game across the world with an opportunity to, potentially, build a globally equitable sporting structure. 

Future outlook

With domestic broadcast agreements secured until at least 2026/27, the WSL (new agreements extend to 2029/30), Liga F, Frauen-Bundesliga, Seria A Femminile, and Première Ligue are entering a period of central financial stability. The next phase in the development of women’s football is likely to include efforts from clubs, leagues, and competitions to build the appropriate foundations to understand, engage and grow their fanbases as well as serve commercial partners with appropriate data, rights, and content.  

As women’s football continues to grow, different investment and operational models are being considered. For example, in February 2024, Michele Kang acquired a majority stake in Olympique Lyonnais Féminin and has a licensing agreement in place to use the OL brand for a period of 50-years. Football clubs and potential investors may consider such a model to allow clubs to monetise both their brand and the women’s team in the short to medium-term and provide investors with the opportunity to operate and grow women’s teams independently from their men’s counterparts. Additionally, in June 2024 Chelsea reorganised the group’s corporate structure such that Chelsea Women are repositioned to sit alongside, rather than beneath, the men’s team. This move could better position the club to seek external investment into their women’s team only. 

Women’s football will continue to leverage international competitions and investment from governing bodies to grow fanbases and the sport. Ahead of the upcoming Women’s EUROs in 2025, UEFA has committed €1 billion in investment to grow women’s football in the region over a six-year period, boosting funding for national and club competitions, and supporting grassroot participation. Similarly, the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil will be the first FIFA Women’s World Cup in South America, aiming to attract new fans and further grow the sport in the region. Driving participation and investment into newer markets is integral to the sustainable growth of the game.   

In recent years, we have witnessed women’s football go from strength to strength in growing attendances, viewership, and commercial revenues, providing a strong business case for investment in the segment. This growth trajectory, fuelled by greater commercial revenue, is allowing women’s clubs to chart their own growth journey. 

However, despite the inflow of investment from fans, commercial partners, and governing bodies, there is still more to do. Funds and sophisticated investors will need to provide both monetary and human capital to accelerate the next cycle of growth. 

¹ Excludes National Women’s Soccer League clubs, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin, and VfL Wolfsburg Women, as information was not available for the purpose of this publication.

² excluding Paris Saint-Germain Féminine, as the club did not provide revenue splits for this publication.

³ Two Circles – 2024 Sports Attendance Review – UK Edition

⁴ as of 7 January 2025, France, Germany, Spain, England, Portugal, Italy, and Sweden were the top seven ranked associations.