Chelsea F.C. Women

Chelsea Football Club Women, formerly known as Chelsea Ladies Football Club, are an English women's football club based in Norbiton that competes in the Women's Super League, the top flight of women's football in England. Since 2004, the club has been affiliated with Chelsea F.C., a men's team in the Premier League. Chelsea Women were a founding member of the Super League in 2010. From 2005 to 2010, the side competed in the Premier League National Division, the top tier of women's football in England at the time.

"Chelsea Women" redirects here. For various subjects titled Chelsea Girls, see Chelsea Girl (disambiguation).

Chelsea FC Women
Chelsea F.C. crest
Full nameChelsea Football Club Women
Nickname(s)The Blues
Founded1992 (1992)[1]
GroundKingsmeadow, Kingston upon Thames, London
Capacity4,850
Presidents
ChairmanAdrian Jacob[3]
ManagerEmma Hayes
LeagueWomen's Super League
2021–22WSL, 1st of 12 (champions)
WebsiteClub website
Departments of Chelsea F.C.
Men's Football Women's Football Academy
Imperial Fields, Chelsea's home ground in 2011

The club has won a record five Women's Super League championships, as well as the FA WSL Spring Series in 2017, and has the second-highest number of outright league championships after Arsenal. They have also won five Women's FA Cup titles, two FA Women's League Cup titles, and were Women's FA Community Shield winners in 2020. They reached their first UEFA Women's Champions League final in 2021, where they were defeated by Barcelona.

History

Establishment

Chelsea Ladies Football Club was formed in 1992 after supporters of Chelsea F.C. expressed desire for a women's side.[4] Tony Farmer, a longtime Chelsea supporter who became interested in women's football when his girlfriend Val Lightfoot joined Crystal Palace,[5] wrote a letter to Chelsea F.C. to propose adding a women's side.[6][7]

Upon approval, Farmer became the club's first manager, lobbied for it to be promoted in men's match programmes,[7][8] and began recruiting youth players to the club, including Casey Stoney and Fara Williams as 12-year-olds in 1994 and 1996, respectively.[6] The side's first home pitch was Hurlingham Park in Fulham.[5]

Farmer managed the club from the third division of the Greater London Women's Football League to the Premier League Southern Division before resigning in 1997.[6] In June 2004, Chelsea Ladies voted to be taken over and funded by Chelsea's Football in the Community department,[9] and in 2004–05 Chelsea won promotion to the Premier League National Division. The club has participated at the top level ever since.[7]

FA Premier League National Division, 2005–2010

After starting 2005–06 with one point from six games, manager George Michealas was fired in September after four years in charge.[10] They finished bottom of the league that season under Shaun Gore, but won a promotion/relegation play-off against Northern Division runners-up Liverpool 4–1 on aggregate to stay in the Premier League National Division.[11] During the season the club had been linked with a transfer bid for North American star players Tiffeny Milbrett and Christine Sinclair.[12]

After an eighth-place finish in 2006–07, Gore drafted in England players Siobhan Chamberlain, Casey Stoney and Eniola Aluko that summer.[13] American World Cup winner Lorrie Fair, regarded as one of the best midfielders in the women's game, joined in January as Chelsea finished 2007–08 in fifth position.[14]

Chelsea Ladies introduced a new manager for the 2008–09 season, former Arsenal Ladies reserve team coach Steve Jones. On 2 July 2008 Chelsea surprisingly signed Lianne Sanderson and Anita Asante from Arsenal Ladies,[15] in addition to veteran Mary Phillip. Then Arsenal Ladies manager Vic Akers criticised his former players as disrespectful,[15] while pursuing players from other clubs to bolster his own squad.

Chelsea Ladies finished the 2008–09 season third behind Arsenal and Everton. Mary Phillip retired a month into the new season,[16] Aluko and Asante left for the new WPS in March 2009, while Fair missed the whole campaign with a cruciate ligament injury sustained in May 2008.[17] Jones departed as manager in January 2009, leaving Stoney to act as player/manager.[18]

At Stoney's recommendation, Matt Beard became manager for 2009–10. Cuts to the Ladies club's funding were offset by financial assistance from John Terry and other Chelsea F.C. players.[2] A further blow arrived when Sanderson left for the 2010 WPS season.[19]

Women's Super League (WSL), 2011–present

The club bid successfully to be one of eight founding teams in the FA Women's Super League in March 2011.[20] On 13 April 2011, the first-ever WSL fixture was played — at Imperial Fields, Chelsea's home ground — between them and Arsenal, which they lost 1–0.[21] Beard led the club to the Women's FA Cup final for the first time in 2012, but Chelsea were eventually beaten by Birmingham City on a penalty shootout after twice taking the lead in a 2–2 draw.[22] In July 2012, Matt Beard resigned as manager after three years in the post.[23]

Former assistant at Arsenal, Emma Hayes, was brought in as manager in 2012, who was one of the first female managers in the WSL.[3] In Hayes' first season in charge, Chelsea, who were still a part-time professional club,[3] finished third-bottom of the League.[24] The following season, they finished second from the bottom.[25] The club subsequently went full-time.[3]

The 2014 season was successful for Chelsea, as they finished second in the FA Women's Super League behind Liverpool on goal difference, after eight wins, two draws and four losses.[26] A final day win would have clinched them the league title, but they lost 2–1 away to Manchester City. Their second-place finish meant that they qualified for the UEFA Women's Champions League for the first time in the club's history. They also reached the semi-finals of both the FA Cup and the League Cup, where they lost to both eventual winners, Arsenal and Manchester City, respectively.

In 2015, it was announced that many of Chelsea's players would be becoming full professionals for the first time.[27]

Chelsea players celebrating their first FA Women's League Cup win in 2020.

On 1 August 2015, Chelsea won their first ever Women's FA Cup. They beat Notts County Ladies at Wembley Stadium. Ji So-yun scored the only goal of the game and Eniola Aluko won the player of the match award.[28] The team then beat Sunderland 4–0 in October 2015 to secure the FA WSL title and a League and Cup double.[29] Chelsea repeated that feat in the 2017–18 season, winning another FA WSL and Women's FA Cup double; in the same season, the team also reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Women's Champions League for the first time.[30] On 23 May 2018, the club rebranded as Chelsea Football Club Women.[31]

Chelsea were awarded the 2019–20 WSL title on a points-per-game basis after the season had to be abruptly terminated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[32][33]

Chelsea began the 2020–21 season by winning their first ever FA Community Shield, against Manchester City.[34] The season also saw them win their second consecutive League Cup, winning 6–0 against Bristol City.[35] Chelsea and manager Hayes won their fourth WSL title, the most by any WSL team, by two points on the final day of the 2020–21 FA WSL season with a 5–0 victory over Reading.[36] Chelsea broke the records for most wins (18) and most points (57) in a season, and became just the third team to defend the League title after Liverpool and Arsenal. Sam Kerr won the WSL Golden Boot for most goals scored by an individual (21), while Fran Kirby was joint top for assists (11) and goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger registered the most clean sheets (12), winning the Golden Glove.[32] Given their remarkable performances over the season, Suzzane Wrack of The Guardian stated that Chelsea was "one of the best women's teams to ever play in England's top flight".[37] On 16 May 2021, Chelsea, on course for a quadruple, lost 4–0 to Barcelona[38] in their first-ever Champions League final appearance.[39] On 5 December 2021, Chelsea won the delayed 2020–21 FA Cup, beating the league leaders Arsenal 3–0 in a dominant display, with goals from Kirby and two from Kerr, helping clinch the trophy and their first domestic treble.[40]

Stadium

Chelsea Women play at Kingsmeadow in Norbiton, Kingston upon Thames, London. Chelsea F.C. purchased Kingsmeadow for the Women from its former occupant AFC Wimbledon, so that Wimbledon could finance their new ground, Plough Lane.[41] Kingsmeadow has a capacity of 4,850.[42]

Between 2012 and 2017, Chelsea played their home games at Wheatsheaf Park.[43] The stadium is located in Staines-upon-Thames, Middlesex and features capacity for 3,002 spectators.[44]

The team previously played at Imperial Fields during the 2011–12 season, the home ground of Tooting & Mitcham United.[45]

Attendance

The current home attendance record of a Chelsea Women's match is 38,350, set on 20 November 2022 during the 2022–23 Women's Super League season match against Tottenham Hotspur, played at Stamford Bridge.[46] Their current home attendance record at their primary ground of Kingsmeadow is 4,670, set on 28 April 2019 in a Champion's League semi-final leg against Lyon.[47]

Players

Current squad
As of 22 January 2023.[48]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Sweden SWE Zećira Mušović
4 DF England ENG Millie Bright (vice-captain)
5 MF Wales WAL Sophie Ingle
7 DF England ENG Jessica Carter
8 MF Germany GER Melanie Leupolz
10 FW England ENG Lauren James
11 MF Norway NOR Guro Reiten
13 MF Czech Republic CZE Kateřina Svitková
14 FW England ENG Fran Kirby
15 DF France FRA Ève Périsset
16 DF Sweden SWE Magdalena Eriksson (captain)
17 MF Canada CAN Jessie Fleming
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 DF Norway NOR Maren Mjelde
19 MF Sweden SWE Johanna Rytting Kaneryd
20 FW Australia AUS Sam Kerr
21 DF England ENG Niamh Charles
22 MF Scotland SCO Erin Cuthbert
23 MF Denmark DEN Pernille Harder
26 DF Canada CAN Kadeisha Buchanan
27 DF Russia RUS Alsu Abdullina
28 MF Serbia SRB Jelena Čanković
30 GK Germany GER Ann-Katrin Berger
32 GK England ENG Emily Orman

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF England ENG Jorja Fox (at Brighton & Hove Albion until June 2023)
— DF Netherlands NED Aniek Nouwen (at Milan until June 2023)
— MF England ENG Charlotte Wardlaw (at Lewes until June 2023)
— FW England ENG Aggie Beever-Jones (at Everton until June 2023)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— FW Japan JPN Maika Hamano (at Hammarby IF until December 2023)
— FW England ENG Emma Thompson (at Lewes until June 2023)
— FW England ENG Lucy Watson (at Charlton Athletic until June 2023)

Development Squad and Academy

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
31 FW England ENG Aimee Claypole
36 MF England ENG Ashanti Akpan
No. Pos. Nation Player
37 FW England ENG Reanna Blades
38 DF England ENG Cerys Brown

Former players

For details of former players, see Category:Chelsea F.C. Women players.

Player of the Year
Year Player Position Ref.
2015 England Eniola Aluko Forward [49]
2016 England Katie Chapman Midfielder [49]
2017 England Karen Carney Midfielder [49]
2017–18 England Fran Kirby Forward [49]
2018–19 Scotland Erin Cuthbert Midfielder [49]
2019–20 England Bethany England Forward [50]
2020–21 England Fran Kirby Forward [51]
2021–22 Australia Sam Kerr Forward [52]

Management team
As of 16 December 2022[53]
Position Staff
ManagerEngland Emma Hayes
Assistant managerEngland Paul Green
Assistant coachUnited States Denise Reddy
Assistant coachAustralia Tanya Oxtoby
Head of technical / Goalkeeping coachEngland Stuart Searle
Movement coachEngland Harry McCulloch
Performance analystRepublic of Ireland Ferdia O'Hanrahan
Scouting co-ordinator / Academy coachEngland TJ O'Leary

Honours
Chelsea players celebrating winning the 2014–15 FA Women's Cup.

Chelsea's first major trophy was the Women's FA Cup, won in 2015. In the same year, the club also won its first league title. After winning the 2021–22 FA Women's Super League (FA WSL) season, Chelsea became the first team to win the WSL title for three seasons in a row.[54] Their most recent success came in May 2023, when they won their fifth FA Cup title.

League titles

Cups
  • Surrey County Cup[57]
    • Winners (9): 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2012–13
    • Runners-up (2): 2004–05, 2010–11

Notes

  1. The 2017 Spring Series was a shortened competition played in a single round-robin format,[55] and is not considered an official WSL title by the FA.[56]

International competitions
Runners-up (1): 2020–21
Runners-up (1): 2013

Other

Doubles

Trebles

Season-by-season records
Seasons of Chelsea F.C. Women
Season Women's Super League FA Cup League Cup Community Shield Champions League
PldWDLGFGAPtsPos
2011 144371419156th Fifth round Quarter-finals Not held Did not qualify
2012 145272023176th Runners-up Group Stage Did not qualify
2013 1431102027107th Fifth round Group Stage Did not qualify
2014 148242316262nd Semi-finals Semi-finals Did not qualify
2015 141022301032Champions Winners Quarter-finals Round of 16
2016 1612134217372nd Runners-up First round Round of 32
2017[lower-alpha 1] 861132319Champions[lower-alpha 1] Semi-finals — —
2017–18 181350441344Champions Winners Semi-finals Semi-finals
2018–19 201262461442 3rd Semi-finals Semi-finals Semi-finals
2019–20 151230471139Champions Quarter-finals Winners Did not qualify
2020–21 221831691057Champions Winners Winners Winners Runners-up
2021–22 221822621156Champions Winners Runners-up Not held Group stage
2022–23 Winners Runners-up Semi-finals
  1. The FA WSL Spring Series was an interim edition of the FA WSL between the sixth and seventh full seasons.

Record in UEFA Women's Champions League
Main article: English women's football clubs in international competitions § Chelsea

All results (home, away and aggregate) list Chelsea's goal tally first.

SeasonRoundOpponentsHomeAwayAggregate
2015–16 Round of 32 Scotland Glasgow City 1–0 3–0 4–0
Round of 16 Germany VfL Wolfsburg 1–2 0–2 1–4
2016–17 Round of 32 Germany VfL Wolfsburg 0–3 1–1 1–4
2017–18 Round of 32 Germany Bayern Munich 1–0 1–2 2–2 (a)
Round of 16 Sweden Rosengård 3–0 1–0 4–0
Quarter-final France Montpellier 3–1 2–0 5–1
Semi-final Germany VfL Wolfsburg 1–3 0–2 1–5
2018–19 Round of 32 Bosnia and Herzegovina SFK 2000 6–0 5–0 11–0
Round of 16 Italy Fiorentina 1–0 6–0 7–0
Quarter-final France Paris Saint-Germain 2–0 1–2 3–2
Semi-final France Lyon 1–1 1–2 2–3
2020–21 Round of 32 Portugal Benfica 3–0 5–0 8–0
Round of 16 Spain Atlético Madrid 2–0 1–1 3–1
Quarter-final Germany VfL Wolfsburg 2–1 3–0 5–1
Semi-final Germany Bayern Munich 4–1 1–2 5–3
Final Spain Barcelona 0–4
2021–22 Group stage Germany VfL Wolfsburg 3–3 0–4 3rd place
(Group A)
Italy Juventus 0–0 2–1
Switzerland Servette 1–0 7–0
2022–23 Group stage France Paris Saint-Germain 3–0 1–0 1st place
(Group A)
Albania Vllaznia 8–0 4–0
Spain Real Madrid 2–0 1–1
Quarter-final France Lyon 1–2 1–0 2–2 (pen.)
Semi-final Spain Barcelona 0–1 1–1 1–2

UEFA club coefficient ranking
Main article: UEFA coefficient § Women's Club coefficient
RankTeamPoints
1Spain Barcelona124.099
2France Lyon118.166
3Germany VfL Wolfsburg104.333
4France Paris Saint-Germain97.166
5Germany Bayern Munich96.333
6England Chelsea81.366
As of 15 May 2023[58]

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