# 2022–23 Women's Super League

The 2022–23 Women's Super League season (also known as the Barclays Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons) was the 12th edition of the Women's Super League (WSL) since it was formed in 2010. It was the fifth season after the rebranding of the four highest levels in English women's football.
Ahead of the season the top two tiers unveiled a new visual identity, dropping "The FA" from the league names as part of the long term strategy for the leagues to be under new ownership in the future. Due to start on 9 September 2022, the FA postponed all of the weekend's football fixtures following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022. The first match was instead played the following week on 16 September.
Chelsea successfully defended their title by defeating Reading, whose relegation from the division after an eight-year stint was confirmed by the result, 3–0 on the final matchday. It was Chelsea's fourth consecutive and sixth overall WSL title. Manchester United became the first side since 2014 to break into the WSL's top three which had been occupied by Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City in various combinations for the previous seven seasons.
Rachel Daly was topscorer and equalled the league record of 22 goals first set by Vivianne Miedema in 2018–19. She became the first English player to win the award since Ellen White in 2017–18. Mary Earps won the golden glove and broke the record for clean sheets in a WSL season with 14.
On 24 September 2022, a new record WSL attendance was set at 47,367 during a match between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal won 4–0.

## Teams

Twelve teams contested the 2022–23 Women's Super League season. Liverpool were confirmed as the 2021–22 FA Women's Championship champions on 3 April 2022, ensuring that they would return to the WSL for the first time since the 2019–20 season after a two year absence. On 4 May 2022, founding members Birmingham City were relegated meaning the 2022–23 season was the first WSL season without them.
| Team | Location | Ground | Capacity | 2021–22 season |
| Arsenal | Borehamwood | Meadow Park | 4,050 | 2nd |
| Aston Villa | Walsall | Bescot Stadium | 11,300 | 9th |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Crawley | Broadfield Stadium | 5,800 | 7th |
| Chelsea | Kingston upon Thames | Kingsmeadow | 4,850 | 1st |
| Everton | Liverpool | Walton Hall Park | 2,200 | 10th |
| Leicester City | Leicester | King Power Stadium | 32,212 | 11th |
| Liverpool | Birkenhead | Prenton Park | 16,547 | WC, 1st |
| Manchester City | Manchester | Academy Stadium | 7,000 | 3rd |
| Manchester United | Leigh | Leigh Sports Village | 12,000 | 4th |
| Reading | Reading | Madejski Stadium | 24,161 | 8th |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Leyton | Brisbane Road | 9,271 | 5th |
| West Ham United | Dagenham | Victoria Road | 6,078 | 6th |
* ↑ Three matches moved to the Emirates Stadium.
* ↑ Five matches moved to Villa Park.
* ↑ Match v Reading moved to Falmer Stadium.
* ↑ Match v Tottenham Hotspur moved to Stamford Bridge.
* ↑ Match v Everton moved to Anfield.
* ↑ Match v Manchester United moved to City of Manchester Stadium.
* ↑ Two matches moved to Old Trafford.
* ↑ Three matches moved to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

### Stadium changes

Having spent the previous three seasons at The Hive Stadium following promotion to the WSL in 2019, Tottenham Hotspur relocated to Brisbane Road, home of Leyton Orient, ahead of the 2022–23 season.
In addition, eight of the ten clubs whose women's team play at secondary stadia moved select matches to the club's primary ground throughout the season. This would have included on opening weekend with Brighton & Hove Albion hosting Aston Villa at Falmer Stadium, Chelsea hosting West Ham United at Stamford Bridge, and Tottenham Hotspur hosting Manchester United at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. With Reading already playing at the Madejski Stadium, it would have meant four of the six openers taking place at the stadium used by their respective clubs' men's team with Everton and Manchester City the only home sides not to do so. However, the opening weekend was postponed along with all other football fixture in the country following the death of Elizabeth II, meaning the predicted "record breaking start" to the season off the back of Euro 2022 was on hold. Everton and West Ham United were the two teams to not play any WSL matches at the club's primary ground during the season.

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Arsenal | Jonas Eidevall | Kim Little | Adidas | Fly Emirates |
| Aston Villa | Carla Ward | Rachel Corsie | Castore | Cazoo |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Melissa Phillips | Victoria Williams | Nike | American Express |
| Chelsea | Emma Hayes | Magdalena Eriksson | Nike | Three |
| Everton | Brian Sørensen | Lucy Graham | Hummel | Stake.com |
| Leicester City | Willie Kirk | Aileen Whelan | Adidas | FBS |
| Liverpool | Matt Beard | Niamh Fahey | Nike | Standard Chartered |
| Manchester City | Gareth Taylor | Steph Houghton | Puma | Etihad Airways |
| Manchester United | Marc Skinner | Katie Zelem | Adidas | TeamViewer |
| Reading | Kelly Chambers | Emma Mukandi | Macron | Select Car Leasing |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Vicky Jepson (interim) | Shelina Zadorsky | Nike | AIA |
| West Ham United | Paul Konchesky | Dagný Brynjarsdóttir | Umbro | Betway |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Everton | Chris Roberts (interim) | End of interim period | 8 May 2022 | End of season (10th) | Brian Sørensen | 5 June 2022 |
| West Ham United | Olli Harder | Resigned | 8 May 2022 | End of season (6th) | Paul Konchesky | 8 May 2022 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Hope Powell | Resigned | 31 October 2022 | 11th | Amy Merricks (interim) | 31 October 2022 |
| Leicester City | Lydia Bedford | Sacked | 3 November 2022 | 12th | Willie Kirk | 3 November 2022 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Amy Merricks (interim) | End of interim period | 28 December 2022 | 11th | Jens Scheuer | 28 December 2022 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Jens Scheuer | Mutual consent | 6 March 2023 | 11th | Amy Merricks (interim) | 6 March 2023 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Rehanne Skinner | Sacked | 13 March 2023 | 10th | Vicky Jepson (interim) | 13 March 2023 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Amy Merricks (interim) | End of interim period | 7 April 2023 | 12th | Melissa Phillips | 7 April 2023 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Chelsea (C) | 22 | 19 | 1 | 2 | 66 | 15 | +51 | 58 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Manchester United | 22 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 56 | 12 | +44 | 56 | Qualification for the Champions League second round |
| 3 | Arsenal | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 49 | 16 | +33 | 47 | Qualification for the Champions League first round |
| 4 | Manchester City | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 50 | 25 | +25 | 47 | |
| 5 | Aston Villa | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 47 | 37 | +10 | 37 | |
| 6 | Everton | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 29 | 36 | −7 | 30 | |
| 7 | Liverpool | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 24 | 39 | −15 | 23 | |
| 8 | West Ham United | 22 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 23 | 44 | −21 | 21 | |
| 9 | Tottenham Hotspur | 22 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 31 | 47 | −16 | 18 | |
| 10 | Leicester City | 22 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 15 | 48 | −33 | 16 | |
| 11 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 22 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 26 | 63 | −37 | 16 | |
| 12 | Reading (R) | 22 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 23 | 57 | −34 | 11 | Relegation to the Championship |
* ↑ England's UEFA association coefficient meant, as the 4th ranked association, the WSL champions qualified for the second round. However, as 2022–23 UEFA Women's Champions League winners Barcelona had already qualified for the group stage as 2022–23 Liga F champions, the title holders' berth to the group stage was redistributed to Chelsea.

## Results

| Home \ Away | ARS | AVL | BHA | CHE | EVE | LEI | LIV | MCI | MNU | REA | TOT | WHU |
| Arsenal | — | 0–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 4–0 | 4–0 | 3–1 |
| Aston Villa | 1–4 | — | 1–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 0–4 | 2–6 | — | 0–2 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 3–3 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 2–1 | 0–8 | 1–0 |
| Chelsea | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | — | 7–0 | 6–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 |
| Everton | 1–4 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–3 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 |
| Leicester City | 0–4 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 0–8 | 0–0 | — | 4–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 |
| Liverpool | 0–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | — | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 |
| Manchester City | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 4–0 | 2–1 | — | 1–1 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 6–2 |
| Manchester United | 1–0 | 5–0 | 4–0 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 5–1 | 6–0 | 2–1 | — | 4–0 | 3–0 | 4–0 |
| Reading | 0–1 | 0–5 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 0–3 | 0–1 | — | 1–0 | 2–1 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1–5 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 4–1 | — | 0–2 |
| West Ham United | 0–0 | 1–2 | 4–5 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 2–2 | — |

## Season statistics
### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Rachel Daly | Aston Villa | 22 |
| 2 | Khadija Shaw | Manchester City | 20 |
| 3 | Bethany England | Chelsea / Tottenham Hotspur | 14 |
| 4 | Sam Kerr | Chelsea | 12 |
| 5 | Leah Galton | Manchester United | 10 |
| 5 | Alessia Russo | Manchester United | 10 |
| 7 | Frida Maanum | Arsenal | 9 |
| 7 | Guro Reiten | Chelsea | 9 |
| 7 | Katie Stengel | Liverpool | 9 |
| 10 | Stina Blackstenius | Arsenal | 8 |
| 10 | Lucía García | Manchester United | 8 |
| 10 | Pernille Harder | Chelsea | 8 |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
| 1 | Mary Earps | Manchester United | 14 |
| 2 | Manuela Zinsberger | Arsenal | 10 |
| 3 | Ann-Katrin Berger | Chelsea | 8 |
| 4 | Mackenzie Arnold | West Ham United | 5 |
| 4 | Hannah Hampton | Aston Villa | 5 |
| 4 | Janina Leitzig | Leicester City | 5 |
| 4 | Ellie Roebuck | Manchester City | 5 |
| 8 | Courtney Brosnan | Everton | 4 |
| 9 | Tinja-Riikka Korpela | Tottenham Hotspur | 3 |
| 9 | Rachael Laws | Liverpool | 3 |
| 9 | Zećira Mušović | Chelsea | 3 |
| 9 | Emily Ramsey | Everton | 3 |

### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Rachel Daly | Aston Villa | Reading | 3–1 (H) | 20 November 2022 |
| Jordan Nobbs | Aston Villa | Brighton & Hove Albion | 6–2 (A) | 12 February 2023 |
| Alessia Russo | Manchester United | Leicester City | 5–1 (H) | 5 March 2023 |
| Khadija Shaw | Manchester City | Tottenham Hotspur | 3–1 (H) | 5 March 2023 |
| Rachel Daly | Aston Villa | Reading | 5–0 (A) | 7 May 2023 |

### Discipline

| | Most yellow cards | Total | Most red cards | Total | Ref. |
| Player | Katie McCabe (Arsenal) | 7 | Aggie Beever-Jones (Everton) Jacqueline Burns (Reading) Hawa Cissoko (West Ham United) Emma Kullberg (Brighton & Hove Albion) Ruby Mace (Leicester City) Ashleigh Neville (Tottenham Hotspur) Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City) Ella Toone (Manchester United) | 1 | |
| Club | Leicester City Reading Tottenham Hotspur | 30 | Brighton & Hove Albion Everton Leicester City Manchester City Manchester United Reading Tottenham Hotspur West Ham United | 1 | |

## Awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month | Goal of the Month | Goal of the Month | Ref. |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club | Player | Club | Ref. |
| September | Carla Ward | Aston Villa | Rachel Daly | Aston Villa | Ashleigh Neville (vs. Leicester City) | Tottenham Hotspur | |
| October | Marc Skinner | Manchester United | Khadija Shaw | Manchester City | Rachel Rowe (vs. Leicester City) | Reading | |
| November | Emma Hayes Denise Reddy | Chelsea | Rachel Daly | Aston Villa | Erin Cuthbert (vs. Tottenham Hotspur) | Chelsea | |
| December | Marc Skinner | Manchester United | Leah Galton | Manchester United | Vivianne Miedema (vs. Everton) | Arsenal | |
| January | Carla Ward | Aston Villa | Gabby George | Everton | Rachel Williams (vs. Reading) | Manchester United | |
| February | Gareth Taylor | Manchester City | Jordan Nobbs | Aston Villa | Lauren James (vs. Tottenham Hotspur) | Chelsea | |
| March | Gareth Taylor | Manchester City | Khadija Shaw | Manchester City | Sam Kerr (vs. Manchester United) | Chelsea | |
| April | Marc Skinner | Manchester United | Chloe Kelly | Manchester City | Katie McCabe (vs. Manchester City) | Arsenal | |

### Annual awards

| Award | Winner | Club |
| Barclays WSL Player of the Season | Rachel Daly | Aston Villa |
| Barclays WSL Manager of the Season | Emma Hayes | Chelsea |
| Barclays WSL Goal of the Season | Katie McCabe (vs. Manchester City) | Arsenal |
| PFA Players' Player of the Year | Rachel Daly | Aston Villa |
| PFA Young Player of the Year | Lauren James | Chelsea |
| FWA Footballer of the Year | Sam Kerr | Chelsea |
PFA Team of the Year :
| Goalkeeper | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) | Mary Earps (Manchester United) |
| Defenders | Ona Batlle (Manchester United) | Ona Batlle (Manchester United) | Ona Batlle (Manchester United) | Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United) | Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United) | Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United) | Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) | Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) | Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) | Rafaelle Souza (Arsenal) | Rafaelle Souza (Arsenal) | Rafaelle Souza (Arsenal) |
| Midfielders | Guro Reiten (Chelsea) | Guro Reiten (Chelsea) | Guro Reiten (Chelsea) | Guro Reiten (Chelsea) | Frida Maanum (Arsenal) | Frida Maanum (Arsenal) | Frida Maanum (Arsenal) | Frida Maanum (Arsenal) | Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City) | Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City) | Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City) | Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City) |
| Forwards | Rachel Daly (Aston Villa) | Rachel Daly (Aston Villa) | Rachel Daly (Aston Villa) | Rachel Daly (Aston Villa) | Khadija Shaw (Manchester City) | Khadija Shaw (Manchester City) | Khadija Shaw (Manchester City) | Khadija Shaw (Manchester City) | Sam Kerr (Chelsea) | Sam Kerr (Chelsea) | Sam Kerr (Chelsea) | Sam Kerr (Chelsea) |

## Highest attendances
### Top 10 highest attendances

    As of 28 April 2023
| Rank | Club | Attendance | Stadium | Opposition | Result | Date |
| 1 | Arsenal | 47,367 | Emirates Stadium | Tottenham Hotspur | 4–0 | 24 September 2022 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 46,881 | Emirates Stadium | Chelsea | 1–1 | 15 January 2023 |
| 3 | Manchester City | 44,259 | City of Manchester Stadium | Manchester United | 1–1 | 11 December 2022 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 40,064 | Emirates Stadium | Manchester United | 2–3 | 19 November 2022 |
| 5 | Chelsea | 38,350 | Stamford Bridge | Tottenham Hotspur | 3–0 | 20 November 2022 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 30,196 | Old Trafford | Aston Villa | 5–0 | 3 December 2022 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 28,574 | Anfield | Everton | 0–3 | 25 September 2022 |
| 8 | Manchester United | 27,919 | Old Trafford | West Ham United | 4–0 | 25 March 2023 |
| 9 | Everton | 22,161 | Goodison Park | Liverpool | 1–1 | 24 March 2023 |
| 10 | Tottenham Hotspur | 21,940 | Tottenham Hotspur Stadium | Manchester United | 1–2 | 12 February 2023 |

### Highest attendances by home team

    As of 28 April 2023
| Club | Attendance | Stadium | Opposition | Result | Date |
| Arsenal | 47,367 | Emirates Stadium | Tottenham Hotspur | 4–0 | 24 September 2022 |
| Aston Villa | 7,517 | Villa Park | Manchester City | 3–3 | 21 May 2023 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 5,220 | Falmer Stadium | Reading | 2–1 | 25 September 2022 |
| Chelsea | 38,350 | Stamford Bridge | Tottenham Hotspur | 3–0 | 20 November 2022 |
| Everton | 22,161 | Goodison Park | Liverpool | 1–1 | 24 March 2023 |
| Leicester City | 4,007 | King Power Stadium | Manchester United | 0–1 | 23 October 2022 |
| Liverpool | 28,574 | Anfield | Everton | 0–3 | 25 September 2022 |
| Manchester City | 44,259 | City of Manchester Stadium | Manchester United | 1–1 | 11 December 2022 |
| Manchester United | 30,196 | Old Trafford | Aston Villa | 5–0 | 3 December 2022 |
| Reading | 5,108 | Madejski Stadium | Manchester United | 0–1 | 22 January 2023 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 21,940 | Tottenham Hotspur Stadium | Manchester United | 1–2 | 12 February 2023 |
| West Ham United | 2,832 | Victoria Road | Arsenal | 0–0 | 5 February 2023 |