A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
.jpg) Tottenham Hotspur celebrates winning the FA WPL play-off | |
| Season | 2016–17 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 21 August 2016 – 28 May 2017 |
| Champions | Tottenham Hotspur |
| Promoted | Tottenham Hotspur |
| Relegated | Blackpool Wren Rovers Exeter City Loughborough Students Lowestoft Town Tranmere Rovers |
← 2015–16 2017–18 → | |
The 2016–17 season of the FA Women's Premier League is the 25th season of the competition, which began in 1992. It sits at the third and fourth levels of the women's football pyramid, below the two divisions of the FA Women's Super League and above the eight regional football leagues.[1]
The league features six regional divisions: the Northern and Southern divisions at level three of the pyramid, and below those Northern Division 1, Midlands Division 1, South East Division 1, and South West Division 1.[1] 72 teams were members of the league before the start of the 2016–17 season, divided equally into six divisions of twelve teams. At the end of the season Blackburn Rovers and Tottenham Hotspur, respectively the champions of the Northern and Southern Divisions, qualified for a playoff match against each other which Tottenham Hotspur won 3-0 thus becoming the overall league champion, and winning them promotion to FA WSL 2.[2]
Premier Division
Northern Division
Changes from last season:
- Guiseley Vixens and Loughborough Foxes were relegated to Northern Division One and Midlands Division One respectively.
- Leicester City Womens and Middlesbrough were promoted into the Northern Division from Midlands Division One and Northern Division One respectively.
- Preston North End was renamed Fylde Ladies after changing its affiliation to AFC Fylde.[3]
- Sporting Club Albion was renamed West Bromwich Albion.[4]
- Nuneaton Town withdrew from the league the week before the season started.[5][6]
| Team | Home ground | 2015–16 position |
|---|---|---|
| Blackburn Rovers | Sir Tom Finney Stadium, Bamber Bridge | 3rd |
| Bradford City | Plumpton Park, Bradford | 5th |
| Derby County | The Don Amott Arena, Derby | 7th |
| Fylde Ladies | Mill Farm, Wesham | 2nd |
| Huddersfield Town | The Stafflex Arena, Kirkburton | 8th |
| Leicester City Womens | Riverside Pavilion, Leicester | 1st in Midlands Division One (promoted) |
| Middlesbrough | Teesdale Park, Thornaby-on-Tees | 1st in Northern Division One (promoted) |
| Newcastle United | Sport Northumbria, Newcastle upon Tyne | 9th |
| Nottingham Forest | Mill Street Playing Fields, Nottingham | 6th |
| Stoke City | Wellbeing Park, Stone | 4th |
| West Bromwich Albion | Dales Lane, Rushall | 1st |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blackburn Rovers (C) | 20 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 59 | 20 | +39 | 54 | Playoff with Southern Division champion |
| 2 | Middlesbrough | 20 | 14 | 1 | 5 | 60 | 31 | +29 | 43 | |
| 3 | Leicester City Women | 20 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 44 | 37 | +7 | 34 | |
| 4 | Stoke City | 20 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 43 | 37 | +6 | 30 | |
| 5 | Derby County | 20 | 9 | 2 | 9 | 39 | 35 | +4 | 29 | |
| 6 | West Bromwich Albion | 20 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 33 | 37 | −4 | 27 | |
| 7 | Fylde Ladies[a] | 20 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 36 | 30 | +6 | 26 | |
| 8 | Bradford City | 20 | 7 | 1 | 12 | 40 | 40 | 0 | 22 | |
| 9 | Huddersfield Town | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 37 | 53 | −16 | 20 | |
| 10 | Nottingham Forest | 20 | 5 | 3 | 12 | 27 | 49 | −22 | 18 | |
| 11 | Newcastle United (R) | 20 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 16 | 65 | −49 | 7 | Relegation to FA Women's Premier League Division One regions |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes: