At the inaugural AGM of the WFA on 6 June 1970 there was representation by 44 clubs and 7 leagues – S.E. of England, Kent, Midlands, West Mercia, Sussex, Northampton and Southampton. By October of that year the Association had accepted the resignation from the newly elected Chair, Pat Dunn and the remaining meetings were chaired by the Vice-Chairman, Pat Gwynne.
Plans were put in place for a national Cup competition with early matches taking place regionally in 8 groups culminating with a competition played at Watford to establish the Finalists and the contenders for the 3/4th places. The Final and 3/4th place match to take place at the Crystal Palace National Sports Stadium on Sunday 9 May meaning that entry had to be by the purchase of a programme not through an entrance fee. This was the time when an entrance fee could not be levied on a Sunday.
The FA lifted the 1921 ban in 1969 and early in 1971 an exploratory meeting was held between The FA and the WFA which would be followed by further talks. After the UEFA decision late in 1971 The FA created a Joint Consultative Committee with the WFA to meet at intervals to discuss matters of mutual interest. By 1972 there were 19 regional leagues in membership including one from Northern Ireland. The AGM had agreed that Scotland, Wales and Ireland should have one representative each on the Council – a situation which would subsequently require clarification with the respective male football authorities.
As early as 1972 The Football League was refusing to permit women’s matches at their grounds – a situation which would persist for a few more years.
In 1972 the Scottish WFA was formed in Edinburgh while the FA of Wales was content for Welsh women’s clubs to remain within the WFA until a WWFA was created (the Welsh WFA was finally formed in 1976). During 1973 the WFA Council agreed a representative be permitted from Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland reasoning that the interests of Wales were at that time adequately served by the membership of the Welsh League.
1975 was a sad year for the Association as Arthur Hobbs died suddenly before he was able to see the huge strides which would be taken over the next few years. He will be remembered for all that he did to establish the sport in such a short period of time.
The decade saw a number of firsts – UEFA took more of an interest in the development of the sport organising the first Conference devoted to the topic in 1973; the WFA held its first course for female Coaches (Pauline Dickie of Southampton, Carol McCune (later Carol Thomas and England captain) and Jayne Talbot of Spurs were successful in achieving the FA Preliminary Coaching Award) and in 1976 the WFA gathered together women referees. Also in that year 20 minutes highlights of the WFA Cup Final were shown in the FA Cup Final television broadcast – Southampton Ladies beating QPR Ladies, 2-1 after extra time.
As a first step for women qualifying as referees, from the winter of 1973 they were able to register with the WFA to officiate at women’s matches only. Successful women were awarded a certificate by the WFA but it would be the introduction of the Sex Discrimination Act in 1975 which would be the spur that opened doors for them. In 1976 The FA and WFA met to consider the implications of the Act and its introduction contributed to the lifting of the restriction on women registering as referees with their County FA – something which had previously been impossible.
Four regional committees were created in 1976 in the hope of sharing out the workload from the hard-pressed honorary Officers. 1978 saw an international played at the then Southampton FC ground, The Dell, where a record attendance of 5,471 was achieved – England beat Belgium 3-0 on this occasion with Ron Greenwood (England men’s manager) and Lawrie McMenemy attending.
The number of clubs throughout the 70s and 80s fluctuated with the 269 in early 1972 increasing to 373 by the time the WFA was preparing to hand over the organisation to The FA in 1992.
Three faithful commercial supporters of women’s football emerged in the WFA’s early years – the Metropolitan Police, the Daily Express and Pontins. From 1980 The Metropolitan Police organised a five-a-side competition aimed at the youth communities of London’s vast population culminating with a Finals night at what is now known (from 2014) as The SSE Wembley Arena. They were happy to include women in this venture and the girls of London competed in droves. Throughout the 1970s and into the 1980s The Daily Express ran a 5-a-side competition at the same venue – known as the Empire Pool Wembley in those days. The competition was for the professional men’s clubs but gave The WFA the opportunity to provide the interval entertainment of a demonstration match. This offered women’s football a much-needed national platform for the first time. In collaboration with Pontins the WFA launched 5-a-side and 9-a-side competitions in 1977 which were played over a week in May at the Brean Sands and Prestatyn holiday villages. The events proved to be very popular with clubs over the next decade.
The workload for the volunteers increased and towards the end of the decade investigations began on the creation of an office with a fulltime official. The June 1979 AGM was important for the Association in that an increase in subscription rates was passed with the sole purpose of employing someone fulltime. In accepting the increase the AGM also stipulated that such appointment could only take place if grant-aid was also secured. During 1980 a recruitment process was undertaken with Linda Whitehead becoming the first paid official for Women’s Football and she was installed in a Central London office.
In many respects the 1980s were turbulent years for the Association. There was discord amongst officials none of which was helped by the continuing financial pressures of how to achieve the desired goals. For the lifetime of the WFA an extraordinary amount of Council time was spent mulling over Rule, Standing Order and Constitutional changes. It was obvious that the future of women’s football lay in attracting younger players and a Schools Project was launched in 1978. The project had limited success and the Association was further disappointed when the English Schools FA declined in 1981 to offer any assistance to the WFA believing that their overstretched resources must be prioritised for schoolboys.
During 1978 the WFA lent its support to The FA in a court case involving Theresa Bennett, an 11 year old player who wanted to join a local boys team because there was no women’s team which was easily accessible. The WFA tried to help her but with the backing of the Equal Opportunities Commission Theresa opted for the legal pathway. The case went to Newark Crown Court and subsequently The FA won on Appeal. In supporting The FA the WFA’s view was simple – if Theresa was to be allowed to join the boys team there would be no bar on boys joining girls/women’s teams. Who can say what the women’s football landscape would have looked like had the final decision gone the other way.
Another first for women in football was the qualification in 1981 of Liz Forsdick as a Class 1 referee but it was to be another ten years before a woman officiated at a Football League match. The honour in this instance went to Wendy Toms who was the 4th Official at the Bournemouth v Reading game.
In late 1982 the WFA became a Company Limited by Guarantee – the intention being to offer some protection to the honorary officials who devoted so much of their lives to the establishment of the sport. The incorporation on 25 November 1982 had the practical effect of “restarting” the sequence of annual general meetings hence the first AGM of the WFA Company Ltd. was held in March 1983. Along with the benefits came the necessity to adhere to the regulations governing companies. In 1983 the WFA was invited to affiliate to The FA on the same basis as a County FA and therefore qualified for a seat on the Council – this was filled by Tim Stearn.
Modifications to the committee structure and responsibilities were made in 1984 to be followed two years later by 9 new regional committees with the aim, once again, to share the administrative load.
The England team’s activities continued apace – governed as always by available finance – and for much of the 1980s and into the 1990s Martin Reagan was in the manager’s hot seat. As detailed within the England pages the 1980s brought some success – an appearance in the final of the 1984 UEFA European Competition for Representative Women’s Teams (the forerunner of the official European Championship), victory in the 1985 and 1988 Italian Mundialito competitions and the first appearance at Wembley Stadium in 1989. In season 1991/92 a National League was launched comprising three divisions – Premier, Division 1 North and Division 1 South. The Champions in that first season were: Premier – Doncaster Belles; Division 1 North – Bronte; Division 1 South – Arsenal.
As the Association entered the 1990s it became evident that the financial situation was not improving and the only way to ensure the progression of the sport was to entrust its future to The FA and their considerable resources. Within the WFA this was not universally seen as the ideal solution. A questionnaire was prepared for distribution which would seek the view of the membership on a transfer of the Association’s business to The FA. A small group within the WFA opted to block the circulation of the questionnaire and in response Richard Faulkner (who had been Chairman since 1988) saw no way forward and chose to resign from his leading role. Talks progressed over the ensuing two years culminating with an agreement to pass the activities and assets of the Association to The Football Association. The FA, The Football Trust and The Sports Council had become increasingly concerned that the WFA was not functioning effectively. The December 1992 AGM was adjourned to offer more time to consider the implications of what was being proposed together with the appointment by The FA of an official to take on the administration. The meeting was reconvened on 6 February 1993. One of the first actions was for The FA to become more involved with the organisation of the England team and they also set up five working parties to consider all aspects of International, Coaching & Education, Competitions, Finance and Constitutional Matters. Representatives of the WFA were invited to sit on each group. By early 1993 the WFA’s financial position was untenable with substantial debts having been accrued. England were knocked out of the UEFA competition by the quarter-final stage and John Bilton stood down as the manager. The FA would appoint the next England manager.
The plan post-the WFA was for the clubs and leagues to belong to the newly created Women’s Football Alliance. There would also be an FA Committee for Women’s Football comprising five representatives from women’s football, five from The FA Council, the Co-ordinator who was appointed by The FA to administer women’s football and the Council Representative.
The last WFA Council meeting was held in Birmingham on 13 November 1993 when the WFA Limited became a dormant company.
History of the Women's Football Association 