A W-League composed of top Australian and international talent would be wonderful. Arguably though, at present this is a dream.
The global acceleration of investment into women’s football has led to a rapid development of other national leagues. While the NWSL was the earliest competitor to attract full-time talent, top European nations, long the bastion of elite male players, have heavily invested in their women’s game in the past five years and in some instances caught up to their American counterparts.
No country has done this more than England. The transition to a full-time professional league three seasons ago has resulted in not only the FAWSL trying find extra talent abroad, but also other European clubs trying to compete for the world’s best players simultaneously.
More female players than ever now have the capacity to have a footballing salary that pays in many instances year round in a number of European countries. This has also put pressure on NWSL teams to provide the same year round financial stability.
The fact of the matter is that the current W-League cannot compete with this. The lack of a full home and away schedule, currently leaving the W-League with a total of 12 regular season games, will never be enough to attract top talent on a permanent basis.
The resulting argument that the W League has started to trail behind other leagues is a valid criticism. Much soul searching has occurred in the last few years, with calls to find new ways to try to keep Australians in the competition as a manner of continuing its high standard.
However, despite the exodus and the continued status of soccer being the fifth most popular sport in Australia, the top flight of women’s football continues to show it is capable of providing both an entertaining and highly competitive environment.
Moreover, the exasperation that the W-League may be becoming a development league should not be seen as a sign of its diminishment of quality, but an exact demonstration of its strength in producing players capable of competing.
If the W-League was not a good highly competitive product, Matildas, Young Matildas and uncapped Australians would not continually be recruited abroad by some of the best leagues and teams.
This journey abroad has long been a source of pride for proponents of the A-League, who have seen young male players and Socceroos venture to new pastures. Australians should now accept that the W-League has created the same pathways for Australian women and celebrate this achievement.
They should continue to show up for the league and the players that remain and keep it growing every year. The W-League is not just a fantastic product, but one that gives Australians a place to grow and to come home to should they encounter injuries or a rough patch in their career.
If that career, or that of the younger talent the comes through, once again leads them away this is to be commended. It shows the quality of what Australia has, and continues to produce.
Copyright ©The Women’s Game All rights reserved.
Discover more from Today Headline
Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email.