The Women’s Super League kicked off its 2025/26 season with an action-packed opening weekend, featuring high-scoring affairs, debut goals, and a memorable Merseyside derby. From Chelsea’s narrow win over Manchester City to Arsenal’s dominant display against London City Lionesses, the first round of fixtures set the tone for what promises to be another thrilling campaign. Read our WSL Recap here.
Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City
Chelsea opened their Women’s Super League 2025/26 campaign with a 2–1 win over Manchester City at Stamford Bridge. The opening exchanges were evenly contested, as you’d expect between two top sides. Chelsea broke the deadlock in the 31st minute when debutant Ellie Carpenter provided a precise cross for Aggie Beever-Jones, who finished confidently to put the hosts ahead.
It was Andrée Jeglertz’s first official match as Manchester City head coach. In the first half, his side created chances but couldn’t find the net. City came out stronger after the break, yet Chelsea doubled their lead in the 64th minute through Maika Hamano. Six minutes later, City pulled one back when Alex Greenwood’s free kick was headed into her own goal by Niamh Charles.
The final stages were marred by injuries to Greenwood and young defender Lily Murphy, who were both forced off. The match ended 2–1 to Chelsea, with City unable to capitalise on their opportunities despite creating numerous chances.
Arsenal 4-1 London City Lionesses
On Saturday, September 6, Arsenal welcomed WSL debutants London City Lionesses to the Emirates Stadium for their opening match. The newcomers started brightly, enjoying the first 20 minutes and even winning a penalty to take a surprise lead.
Arsenal looked unsettled early on, but summer signing Olivia Smith struck back with a stunning long-range effort, a spectacular way to mark your debut and open your account for the Gunners. The equaliser gave Arsenal the lift they needed, and before half time Chloe Kelly put them ahead. From that point, Arsenal never looked back.
In the second half, substitute Beth Mead made an instant impact, providing back-to-back assists: first for Stina Blackstenius, and just a minute later for Frida Maanum.
The match finished 4–1 to Arsenal in front of 38,142 fans, an impressive start to their season. For London City, it was a valuable lesson in the levels required at the top of the WSL.
Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 West Ham United
Tottenham Hotspur are another WSL side beginning the season with a new head coach, and Martin Ho marked his debut with a first league win. Bethany England scored the only goal of the match from the penalty spot. Despite the victory, there is still plenty for Ho’s team to improve on, as they managed just one shot on target in open play.
For West Ham United, a draw would not have been undeserved. Their best chance fell to Shekiera Martinez in the first half, while Piubel, Asseyi and Ueki also threatened the Spurs defence.
Manchester United 4-0 Leicester City
Manchester United continued their excellent start to the season, following two Women’s Champions League qualifier wins, with a commanding victory over Leicester City. Toone opened the scoring in the 13th minute, and Terland doubled the lead 12 minutes later. Malard added two more in the second half to seal a convincing performance.
Leicester entered the match unsettled after the sacking of head coach Amandine Miquel less than two weeks before their opener. Outclassed on the day, they now face a big task ahead under interim coach Rick Passmoor.
Liverpool 1-4 Everton
Liverpool made a flying start to the first Merseyside derby of the season when Kapocs burst down the left flank, cut inside and scored to give the Reds an early lead. They kept up the pressure and almost doubled their advantage, but Everton struck back in the 24th minute when Vignola’s effort leveled the match. Just before the break, Snoeijs headed in to make it 2-1 to the Toffees.
Everton came out the stronger side in the second half, and Vignola took control, adding two more goals to complete her hat-trick. Liverpool couldn’t recover in the final half-hour and fell to a 4-1 defeat at Anfield.
Brighton 0-0 Aston Villa
The only goalless game in the Women’s Super League this weekend was between Brighton & Hove Albion and Aston Villa. Aston Villa were unfortunate not to score as Daly’s 25-yard strike rattled the crossbar, while Brighton came close when Agyemang’s effort was well blocked by Patten. A goalless draw reflected the tight contest between the sides.
WSL Recap 2025/26