Recognising a record-breaking year in women’s football never gets old — 2024 has been no different. The last 12 months have seen the largest attendance at a Women’s Super League (WSL) game in history as 60,160 bought tickets to watch Arsenal beat Manchester United at the Emirates in February. There was also the first weekend (November 16-17) when all matches in the top two divisions were played at the home side’s main stadium, attracting a cumulative 65,485 in WSL attendances.
Advertisement On the pitch, Chelsea’s league dominance was threatened by Manchester City, who remain the champions’ biggest challengers. Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion have shown signs they can compete, too. Matt Beard’s Liverpool finished in fourth — and above Manchester United — in their second season back in the WSL and Brighton will end the year in fifth.
Familiar issues persist, however, including the gulf between the predictable top three and the lower end of the table, and the worryingly incessant frequency of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures. Chelsea alone have seen Sophie Ingle, Mia Fishel and Sam Kerr sustain the injury. Here, The Athletic looks back at the weird and the wonderful of this year.
Highlight It is not a singular moment but it was encouraging that all the domestic trophies were won by different teams for the first time since 2017, when the League Cup wasn’t contested. Chelsea lifted the WSL, Arsenal the League Cup and Manchester United the FA Cup .
