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We also share operating budget data from across Tiers 3 & 4 and give our take (and Chorley management’s initial reaction) to the FA's new proposals to expand tiers 3 through 6 of the English women's pyramid.

New club Chair, Jonny Slater, provides details of the club's strategy to grow sustainably and goes full '𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘬𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘰' 👘 in sharing the club's detailed financial forecast for the 24/25 season.

And in the spotlight 🔦 is Chorley Women FC, a Tier 4 club with a humble budget but ambitious plans to drive revenue growth, push their team further along the professionalisation curve and higher up the pyramid 📈🔝.

This time out the @twffpod.bsky.social team headed north to delve into the financial realities in the often-overlooked middle tiers.

PLUS you get Val, Dave and Steve's take on the 𝗡𝗪𝗦𝗟 free agency stampede, the 𝘶𝘯-𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 of BOS Nation and Santa's 🎅 𝗪𝗦𝗟 Panini sticker book generosity 💸.

Tune in now! 🎧

What’s needed is more investment in these tiers to accelerate the professionalisation curve and make teams more competitive with the professionals.

But with WSL and WC operating costs continuing to outpace revenues, who is brave enough to bet £ on pushing a Tier 3/4 women's team up to the summit?

As the WSL and Championship gain more and more exposure over the coming years, will more money trickle down to the lower tiers of the pyramid to allow it to put down firmer roots and provide a better platform for growth?

Perhaps. But that will certainly be a slow journey.

These relatively minuscule operating budgets make it difficult for them to improve their squads and compete for promotion. And even newly promoted sides often find it difficult to survive without additional deficit funding from an owner or affiliated men’s teams.

Many clubs at these levels don’t receive meaningful support from owners or affiliated men’s teams (if any), so they rely mainly on ticket sales, food & beverage sales, local sponsorships, and (if eligible) small grants from the FA, to balance the budget.

In Tier 4, the average budget is a mere £𝟵𝟳𝗸, with the upper, middle and lower averages being £𝟮𝟬𝟬𝗸, £𝟲𝟱𝗸 and £𝟯𝟭.𝟱𝗸, respectively.

It's impressive that they're able to run a team with those figures, and carries some lessons for clubs elsewhere.

According to data from England's FA, the average budget for a Tier 3 side in the Women's National League is around £𝟯𝟳𝟯𝗸, with the upper, middle and lower averages being £𝟳𝟯𝟴𝗸, £𝟮𝟴𝟲𝗸 and £𝟵𝟳𝗸.

Women's Players in Tiers 3 & 4 in England are a mix of semi-professional and amateur; most hold down full or part-time jobs or studies and train once or twice a week. Attendances, revenues and costs at these levels tend to be significantly lower than in the WSL and Women's Championship.