By Catherine MacKenzie (12/05/2025)
Above: Chelsea celebrate their sixth successsive title win. Photo: Chelsea FC Women.
Now that yet another WSL season has come to an end, there is time to sit back and reflect on one of the world’s most exciting women’s leagues. Whilst Chelsea took home the title for a sixth consecutive year, there were surprises.
Who could have foreseen Tottenham finishing one above bottom after reaching the FA Cup final last year? Did anyone see the exodus of head coaches coming? Who would have thought that Arsenal would ship five goals to Aston Villa?
There were some standout head coaches, players, and games over the course of the 2024-25 season. Eleven members of the Impetus team have voted on their standouts, with the results presented below.
Head coach of the season – Sonia Bompastor
If there is one winner that is entirely self-explanatory, it is Sonia Bompastor as the coach of the season. Coming in to replace Emma Hayes – who had been at the club for over a decade, winning every trophy possible (barring one), many pundits anticipated a period of transition like Manchester United have experienced since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson.
In contrast, Bompastor has taken Chelsea to new heights, building on the work of Hayes and adding her own flair to the champions.
Coming in second was Villa head coach Natalia Arroyo. Arroyo has guided Aston Villa away from relegation by claiming five wins from their last five games of the season, including statement wins over Arsenal (5-2), Tottenham (3-2) and Liverpool (2-1).
Arriving midway through the season after previous head coach Robert De Pauw left under a cloud of accusations of inappropriate behaviour, Arroyo has steadied the ship to leave Villa in seventh place.
Results:
Sonia Bompastor – 8
Natalia Arroyo – 2
Renee Slegers – 1
Head Coach – Special mentions
Although Bompastor took gold in a landslide in our polls, we also asked our contributors which head coaches they would like to give a special mention to – the top three were Dario Vidosic, Renee Slegers and Rehanne Skinner.
Vidosic was hired by a Brighton that are pushing to become one of the most progressive clubs in England. From building a stadium for their women’s team to investing in experienced players like Lionesses Fran Kirby and Nikita Parris, the Seagulls are on the rise.
Vidosic has deployed an exciting brand of football, leading Brighton to fifth in the WSL, a major improvement on last season where they finished in ninth place.
Slegers took over an Arsenal side that were languishing – losing both in the league and in Europe, slipping further and further behind their rivals. Slegers has revitalised the Gunners’ attack through minor tweaks to formation, building on the positives that were there before her arrival.
Rehanne Skinner has significantly transformed West Ham United Women since her appointment in July 2023. Taking over a team that finished 11th in the 2023–24 Women’s Super League (WSL) season, Skinner implemented tactical changes and fostered a positive team culture, leading to notable improvements in performance.
This season, the Hammers finished ninth – important wins against Tottenham and Brighton and draws against Manchester United and Chelsea sealing the perception that they are a very hard team to beat.
Results:
Dario Vidosic – 4
Renee Slegers – 3
Rehanne Skinner – 2
Natalia Arroyo – 1
Player of the season – Mariona Caldentey
Spanish star Caldentey has had a stellar inaugural season for Arsenal. The 29-year-old has started 20 of the Gunners’ 22 games, scoring nine goals, with 1.6 shots per game and one shot on target per game. She has added five assists to this total, and has created 13 big chances during the season, second to fellow Gunner Katie McCabe (16).
For her first season in the WSL, it is arguable that she couldn’t have done more – she has also been recognised with the WSL player of the year award (voted for by fans of all clubs). Accepting that accolade, the player told the BBC: “I’m super happy because I really enjoyed my first season here. Everybody helped me.”
Results:
Mariona Caldentey – 4
Bunny Shaw – 2
Millie Bright / Shekeira Martinez / Alessia Russo / Phallon Tullis-Joyce / Lucy Bronze – 1
Player of the season special mention – Olivia Smith
We also asked our team if there is a player they would like to give a special mention to. Olivia Smith joined Liverpool last summer from CP Sporting, and the 20-year-old Canada U20 international has not looked back. She has revolutionised Liverpool’s attack, causing chaos for any backline she has faced.
Smith has started 20 of 22 games, scoring seven goals and having 2.5 shots per game. She has registered the third-most successful dribbles per game (behind Manchester City’s Kerolin and Leicester’s Missy Goodwin, 58%), and the biggest issue for Liverpool will be trying to keep hold of the forward.
Results:
Olivia Smith: 4
Sandy Baltimore – 2
Mariona Caldentey/ Alessia Russo/ Hannah Hampton/ Viviane Asseyi / Mary Fowler – 1
Goalkeeper of the season – Phallon Tullis-Joyce
Phallon Tullis-Joyce had an outstanding WSL season, her first as Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper. Stepping into big shoes after Lioness Mary Earps’ departure, the American shot-stopper played all 22 league matches, recording 13 clean sheets – the joint-highest in the league alongside Chelsea’s Hannah Hampton – conceding only 16 goals.
Beyond traditional metrics, Tullis-Joyce ranks top for goals prevented (6.89), showcasing her shot-stopping ability. Her impact was acknowledged by United with a new three-year contract extension and by Emma Hayes with her first cap for the USWNT.
Results:
Phallon Tullis-Joyce: 6
Hannah Hampton: 3
Daphne van Domselaar: 2
Defender of the season – Maya Le Tissier
The WSL’s youngest captain is Impetus’ defender of the season. When she was handed the armband at Manchester United last summer, there were questions over her youth. However, those questions have been answered over the course of the year, as Le Tissier led United to a third-place finish amidst the usual external noise that accompanies the club.
Statistically, Le Tissier’s defensive prowess was evident: she recorded 32 tackles – eight more than in the previous season – and won 29 aerial duels, surpassing her 2023–24 total. Notably, she was dribbled past only seven times throughout the season, and had the most accurate long balls – seven, surpassing Leah Williamson’s 6.5.
Results
Maya Le Tissier – 4
Millie Bright – 3
Kerstin Casparij / Nathalie Bjorn / Laia Aleixandri / Emily Fox – 1
Midfielder of the season – Mariona Caldentey
As discussed above, Caldentey has had a standout inaugural WSL season with Arsenal. Rather than repeat her ‘player of the season’ analysis, here are a couple of quotes from her teammates on what she brings to the team:
Emily Fox to OneFootball: “She’s so good. Very hard to defend…she has everything in her toolbox.”
Alessia Russo to OnlineGooner: “She’s been great since she’s come in… I feel like I learned a lot off of her too, she’s obviously a world-class player, and a person too.”
Results:
Mariona Caldentey – 3
Grace Clinton / Erin Cuthbert – 2
Johanna Kaneryd / Yui Hasegawa / Kim Little / Ella Toone – 1
Forward of the season – Alessia Russo
England’s first-choice striker Alessia Russo has had what is arguably the best season of her career. Praised particularly for her work-rate both on and off the ball, she has developed rapidly since arriving at Arsenal in the summer of 2023. This season, she shares the golden boot with Manchester City’s Bunny Shaw (12 goals each), additionally registering two assists.
She had 73 shots overall – 3.5 per game, joint second with Vivianne Miedema (Shaw is first with 3.7). She is joint first with Shaw and Miedema for shots on target per game (1.6) and has been careful with discipline – receiving no cards across the entire season.
Results:
Alessia Russo – 5
Aggie Beever-Jones – 3
Mary Fowler / Bunny Shaw / Lauren Hemp – 1
Club of the season – Chelsea
Club of the season was never going to be too controversial: the team who won the league won it with two games to spare, recording a record number of wins and going the entire season unbeaten. If that was not enough, they also made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League and won the League Cup; they face Manchester United in the FA Cup final next weekend. The club of the season had to be Chelsea.
Results:
Chelsea – 7
Manchester United / Arsenal – 2
Game of the season – Manchester City 2 – 4 Manchester United (19th January 2025)
Although the last Manchester derby of the season had more at stake (a Champions League spot for next season), the chaos of the earlier encounter between City and United at the Etihad is unforgettable.
From goalkeeper gaffes to a hattrick for a childhood United fan, the game had it all. City’s commitment to playing out from the back, even under pressure, proved costly – and is something subsequent opponents went on to use to their advantage.
The victory propelled United above City into third place in the WSL standings, enhancing their prospects for League qualification. The win also marked United’s first league triumph over a fellow ‘big four’ team in nine attempts.
Results:
Manchester City 2 – 4 Manchester United, 4 votes
Arsenal 4 – 3 West Ham, 2 votes
Arsenal 4 – 3 Manchester United, 1 vote
West Ham 7 – 1 Crystal Palace, 1 vote
Aston Villa 5 – 2 Arsenal, 1 vote
We will be waiting with baited breath to see what the 2025/26 WSL season has in store – a new champion? Will London City Lionesses stay in the top flight?
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