WSL Players Cup revamp strips Arsenal, Chelsea and City from 2026/27 competition

The Women’s League Cup has been rebranded as the WSL Players Cup — officially the Subway Players Cup — and handed a significant structural overhaul ahead of the 2026/27 season, with the three previous dominant clubs absent from the draw for the first time.

Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City, the only clubs to have won the competition since its 2011 introduction, will not enter because of their UEFA Champions League commitments. The decision guarantees a new name on the trophy for the first time in the tournament’s history.

The revamp follows a review conducted with input from clubs, players and fans, with player welfare cited as the central motivation. The old group-stage format has been replaced by a single unified league table featuring 23 clubs — 11 of the 14 WSL sides and all 12 WSL 2 teams. Each club will play a minimum of six matches in the league phase, double the previous minimum of three, with fixtures split into regional sections for scheduling purposes.

The league phase runs from September through December 2026, with games primarily slotted into Champions League match weeks to avoid fixture congestion for the participating clubs. The top eight teams at the end of the league phase will advance to a knockout round.

The points system also differs slightly from standard league rules. A win in normal time earns three points, but any match level after 90 minutes goes straight to a penalty shootout — the winner collects two points and the loser one, ensuring every game produces a decisive outcome.

The format is explicitly designed to create more meaningful minutes for players outside European competition and to give younger talent greater exposure at a competitive level.

England and Chelsea defender Lucy Bronze acknowledged the human cost of the structural change earlier this year, saying she was “sad” at the prospect of being unable to compete for the domestic trophy under the new setup.

With the three historically dominant clubs removed and a broader pool of WSL and second-tier sides competing across a longer league phase, the 2026/27 edition represents the most open edition of the competition since its inception.