The Barclays Women’s Super League and Barclays Women’s Championship unveil their new The Stakes Have Never Been Higher campaign

The Barclays Women’s Super League and Barclays Women’s Championship have today unveiled their new The Stakes Have Never Been Higher season launch campaign.

Following a record breaking 2023-24 season which saw over one million fans through the turnstiles at games across both leagues, and attendance and viewership numbers surpassed on a regular basis, the stakes in the women’s professional game truly have never been higher.

Featuring 20 players from clubs across both the Barclays Women’s Super League and Barclays Women’s Championship, this year’s season launch creative campaign is reflective of the new heights reached by the women’s game in recent seasons.

Bringing the players together at the top of a high-rise building, their competitiveness and incredible skills shine through as a mass game of keeping the ball off the ground breaks out – officiated by referee Mel Burgin – with only one winner come the end…

Showcasing some of the leagues’ finest talent, the creative features Barclays WSL stars Katie McCabe (Arsenal), Jordan Nobbs (Aston Villa), Fran Kirby (Brighton & Hove Albion), Sam Kerr (Chelsea), Aurora Galli and Courtney Brosnan (Everton), Jutta Rantala (Leicester City), Taylor Hinds (Liverpool), Kerstin Casparij (Manchester City), Hannah Blundell (Manchester United) and Martha Thomas (Tottenham Hotspur).

From the Barclays Women’s Championship, newly promoted Portsmouth and Newcastle United are represented by Ava Rowbotham and Shania Hayles while Christie Harrison-Murray (Birmingham City), Tyler Toland (Blackburn Rovers), Chloe Mustaki (Bristol City), Beth Hepple (Durham), Chantelle Boye-Hlorkah (London City Lionesses), Molly Graham (Sheffield United) and Molly Pike (Southampton) also take centre stage.

The Stakes Have Never Been Higher is a fully integrated multi-channel campaign developed by the leagues and their creative agency Dark Horses to drive excitement and anticipation for the season ahead.

The campaign launches on September 16, and runs until the end of the month, visible nationally across out of home placements, digital media including YouTube and Meta, and VOD channels Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+. ThreePipe Reply have supported with campaign media strategy.

With the Barclays Women’s Championship campaign already underway having kicked off on September 8, the 2024-25 Barclays WSL season begins on Friday 20 September with champions Chelsea hosting Aston Villa at Kingsmeadow in front of the BBC cameras.

The opening weekend will also see games hosted at Old Trafford (Manchester United v West Ham United, Saturday 21 September, 12pm KO), and the Emirates Stadium (Arsenal v Manchester City, live on Sky Sports on Sunday 22 September, 12.30pm KO).

This season meanwhile, all top flight games not chosen for broadcast will be shown live on the league’s new YouTube channel, Barclays WSL, while selected Barclays Women’s Championship fixtures per match round will be broadcasted on the division’s channel, Barclays WC.