'Hard for Bristol City to compete in WSL', says chair
It is "very hard to compete" in the Women's Super League against clubs backed by men's Premier League money, says the chair of recently relegated Bristol City.
The Robins were relegated back to the Championship on Sunday after only one season in the top flight, where they have won only one of their 20 games so far.
The club was the only one in the WSL this season not affiliated with a men's Premier League team.
"At the moment with the lack of money in the women’s game, the lack of broadcast revenue, the lack of transfer fee income, it does then become very hard to compete," said chair Gavin Marshall.
"Even in the Championship, let alone the WSL, when you’re competing against teams that have got the Premier League money, have got much, much bigger budgets."
Marshall said Bristol City doubled their budget this season for the women's team and that increase came purely from owner Steve Lansdown, with no "nest egg" on offer for clubs promoted to the WSL.
Yet the club still had the youngest average age of any starting XI in the league this season and their squad was noticeably lacking an abundance of players who had previous WSL experience.
Marshall pointed to the number of injuries the team suffered this season as a factor but also said he did not believe a slightly bigger budget would have made enough of a difference.
"We felt the squad was good enough to keep us up, but [it] has looked light at times purely due to injuries," Marshall said.
"We could have spent more money and we still would have probably had the smallest budget in the league or we might still have got relegated.
"We’ve got to take a long-term view. This is a journey for us and we didn’t want to make decisions that were going to cost us in the long-term."
'Big clubs are not compensating'
Bristol City have a strong track record of developing homegrown talent and their academy has seen players such as England goalkeeper Mary Earps, and forwards Lauren Hemp and Katie Robinson now at Manchester United, Manchester City and Brighton respectively, who have come through the Robins' ranks.
Teenage centre-back Brooke Aspin was also signed by Chelsea last July on a four-year deal, but was loaned back to Bristol City for this season.
However Marshall pointed to the lack of compensation given to clubs for developing players being as a major issue.
From next season rule changes will require clubs to pay a 'recognition fee' to academy clubs when players sign a first professional contract.
"Lauren Hemp signed a new deal with Man City, exceptional player – she left us for for nothing. We invested in her, we developed her," Marshall said.
"Brooke Aspin last summer left for nothing. We were lucky – if that’s the term - to get her back on loan from Chelsea for the season.
"It’s very hard when that’s the landscape and when the big clubs aren’t compensating and the rules aren’t there – you aren’t getting that compensation or value.
"It’s hard to find the funds to keep investing."
However, after seeing an average crowd of more than 7,000 this season, Bristol City will continue to play their home games at Ashton Gate when they return to the Championship.
"We want to grow the game," Marshall added.
"We invest heavily in our academy, we give young players an opportunity, we give young players who’ve come through our academy from this area an opportunity to be a professional footballer and that’s really important."
