Arrival of foreign stars prompts WSL home-grown player quota from 2021

The Women's Super League has reached an agreement with the Football Association to introduce a minumum number of homegrown players in squads from the start of the 2021-22 season.

Teams in the WSL will have to have at least eight players who were trained by an English club for three seasons or more by the time they turned 21. In the Women's Championship, that number will rise to 15 players in a 25-strong squad or 14 if the club only has 24 players.

There has been an influx of foreign players this summer, led by the world-record arrival of Pernille Harder at Chelsea. Whilst that has helped the WSL secure new broadcast deals in the United States, Germany and Italy, the FA admits there has to be a balance.

"We have an agreement with the clubs and the board that from 2021-22, we'll bring in homegrown quotas that will be the same as the men's game," said the FA's director of the women's professional game, Kelly Simmons.

"The other big one that will impact a club's abilities to access foreign talent will be once we 'Brexit'. That will inevitably make it more challenging [to sign for an English club], unless you're a top talent.

"We want world-class players and we've seen some amazing signings. That's brilliant for the league and it's brilliant for the England players because those who are playing here, they're playing against some of the best players in the world.

"Of course, we want to make sure that we've got space for English talent as well. It's always about trying to find that balance and work with the clubs and the league board to get the right balance."

The Everton manager Willie Kirk has been amongst those calling for more opportunities for British players in the WSL, despite signing high-profile stars such as France striker Valerie Gauvin this summer.