The Women’s Super League has paused for a two-week break after five frantic weeks, with Manchester City setting the pace and London City Lionesses providing the season’s most striking result so far. The early table already suggests a campaign in which the established order may be less secure, while promoted clubs and attendance figures offer other storylines to follow.
London City Lionesses backed up their pre-season ambition in emphatic fashion with a 6-1 win at Tottenham on Sunday. Alexia Putellas, a two-time Ballon d’Or winner and the headline arrival of their summer recruitment, scored twice, but the manner in which the whole side dismantled previously impressive opponents was the standout feature. Fellow forwards Kadidiatou Diani and Danielle van de Donk also looked a class above. Manager Eder Maestre said such a win “can be a game-changer”. For Tottenham, the home defeat was a humiliating reality check after promising early results. Liverpool have also impressed in narrow away losses to both Manchester clubs but, without key attacking players such as Vivien Endemann against United, lacked creativity. The contrast points to squad depth as perhaps the biggest advantage London City hold over both Spurs and Liverpool.
Manchester City remain the team to beat. Five wins from five, with 16 goals scored, have the defending champions picking up where they left off. Their comeback victory over Arsenal on Sunday gave City their best start to a season since 2017-18, when they opened with seven straight wins, and it likely ended the Gunners’ title aspirations even this early. Khadija Shaw, whose contract renewal in the summer was key, already has five league goals, while England winger Lauren Hemp has contributed four goals and two assists. City also made quietly shrewd additions in Beth Mead, Carlotta Wamser and Niamh Charles.
Chelsea are City’s closest rivals. After drawing with Aston Villa on the opening day, Chelsea have won four straight games without conceding. Manager Sonia Bompastor wants them to be more clinical, but their defensive strength is an area they hold over City. Arsenal, meanwhile, are 10 points behind the leaders, and pre-season hopes of a first league title since 2018-19 are vanishing. Manager Renee Slegers said: “At the moment, we are not in the conversation.”
Manchester United are finding their feet under Eva Olid. Her arrival from Hearts began with convincing defeats by London City and Chelsea, and the club framed the season as one of transition, but recent performances suggest the players are getting to grips with her style. Saturday’s 1-0 win over Liverpool was United’s fourth consecutive victory in all competitions, with 18 goals scored in that run. “I am so happy for the players – they deserve it,” Olid said. “We have started to click in a lot of things and they fight for each other. But there is still a lot to improve. We created chances, but our last pass and our finishing needs to be better.” Summer signing Andrea Medina has been a huge positive on the left wing, her contribution more pronounced than a single goal suggests. A trip to bottom side Charlton after the break is a presentable chance for more points before a stern test against Manchester City the following weekend.
The league’s expansion to 14 teams has brought mixed fortunes for the promoted clubs. Crystal Palace look the most comfortable, with six points from five games, moving to eighth after drawing at Aston Villa on Sunday. Birmingham and Charlton prop up the table. Birmingham, the WSL 2 champions, have just two points, one of them against Crystal Palace, though France forward Oceane Hurtre has adapted well and sits joint top scorer with five goals from five games. She scored against Everton in defeat on Sunday, after which defender Neve Herron said the Blues were “second to everything”. Charlton are bottom with zero points, 15 goals against and only two scored. Following their 5-1 loss to Brighton, goalkeeper and captain Sophie Whitehouse said: “It just wasn’t good enough. It’s a tough league. The jump up is so big. You can’t make any mistakes.”
Finally, attendances at some of the league’s biggest matches have been down on previous seasons, though it is too soon to draw conclusions. Chelsea’s home game against Arsenal on 27 September had 36% fewer fans at Stamford Bridge than in January this year. Liverpool against Everton at Anfield was 19% down on last season, although the Merseyside derby was the first game of the 2025-26 campaign. Three Saturdays ago, Arsenal kicked off against Manchester United at 17:30 in front of 29,853 fans; last season, the lunchtime fixture welcomed 37,627. For balance, Manchester City’s game against Arsenal on Sunday was moved from Joie Stadium to Etihad Stadium and definitely drew more than the 4,300 who attended last season, although official figures have not yet been released. With a small sample size, paying customers are a potential trend to monitor as the WSL continues to wrestle with the challenge of the schedule.