London City Lionesses have stunned the women's football world with a remarkable transfer spree this summer, signing a host of global stars including two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas, Spain defender Mapi León, former England goalkeeper Mary Earps, and France winger Kadidiatou Diani. The club, which finished in the bottom half of the second tier just over two years ago, is now intent on breaking up the Women's Super League's established order.
Reaction Divided Over Investment
Reaction to London City's recruitment drive has been divided. Many admire the investment from owner Michele Kang, an American businesswoman, into the women's game. However, senior staff at rival clubs are baffled that a smaller team can afford such world-class signings within the WSL's salary cap. The key question on many lips is: how are London City able to sign all these top players?
Scepticism stems from the club's most recent financial accounts, covering the 2024-25 season when they won promotion to the top division. Those accounts showed total revenue of £902,000 and an operating loss of £10.6 million—over 10 times their revenue. At that time, there were no strict financial rules in place, but now there are.
WSL Salary Cap Regulations
The league's new financial regulations stipulate that a WSL club's wage bill must not exceed 80% of revenue plus up to £4 million, or a further 25% of revenue, whichever is higher. Sanctions for breaching the cap include a one-point deduction for every £100,000 of overspending, with 10 or more points deducted for overspending exceeding £900,000.
However, the league's rules also state that sanctions will not be enforced during the 2025-26 season, which is consistent with what sources at more than half a dozen WSL clubs have said. Last season was treated as a transition year or a "dry run" of the new regulations, meaning no clubs will be punished for overspending in 2025-26. But from 2026-27 onwards, sanctions will become enforceable, and there is widespread expectation that every club must work within the salary cap for the upcoming campaign.
London City's Revenue Challenge
London City have also signed Janni Thomsen from Utah Royals and Nicole Anyomi from Eintracht Frankfurt this summer. With a series of international-level signings in 2025, including France's Grace Geyoro, Spain's Lucía Corrales, and Australia's Alanna Kennedy, it is widely anticipated that they will not have met the "80% of revenue plus £4 million" wage cap in 2025-26. They are unlikely to be alone, as many WSL clubs grapple with lower revenues.
Kang's belief in the commercial potential of women's footballers is unwavering. If she is wrong, her chickens may come home to roost after 2026-27. But if she is right, other club owners will wish they had invested more upfront. Many interested parties are waiting to see how much London City's revenues rise and where any sponsorship comes from.
Compliance and Transparency
The club are understood to be confident they are fully compliant and transparent with the league. London City, who finished sixth in the WSL last season, believe they have triggered commercial growth across the league with the addition of Putellas and Earps. Their financial accounts for the year ending June 2027 will not be published until spring 2028, but all clubs must submit relevant documentation by September after the season ends—in this case, September 2027.
For the league, there is a fine balance between attracting investors like Kang and maintaining sporting integrity. Many in the sport sympathise with Kang, as she does not have the luxury of leaning on revenues from an affiliated men's club. However, the fundamental question of sustainability remains: is the ever-increasing gap between the WSL's haves and have-nots healthy for the game? The juxtaposition between London City's spending spree and budget cuts at clubs like Southampton, Plymouth, and Forest Green Rovers—who dropped their women's team altogether—could hardly be more stark.
