Crystal Palace W.F.C.

Crystal Palace Football Club Women is a women's association football club based in South London, England, which competes in the Women's Super League 2, the second tier of English women's football. The team, known as the "Eagles", is affiliated to the men's equivalent Crystal Palace F.C..

The club play its home matches at the VBS Community Stadium in Sutton, South London, as well as select matches at Selhurst Park. They previously played at Hayes Lane, the home ground of Bromley F.C., between 2014 and 2023.

History

The club was formed in 1992 as Crystal Palace Ladies F.C.. Since 2003, the club has risen up England's football pyramid, winning the South East Combination Women's Football League in 2003–04, and they later achieved their first cup success defeating Chelsea in the Surrey FA County Cup final in 2011. Palace won the London and South East Women's Regional Football League title in 2013–14, gaining promotion to the FA Women's National League regional section. They won the South East Division One title in 2015–16, after going the whole season undefeated. The club also won the Surrey FA County Cup that same season against AFC Wimbledon in the final.

In 2018, Palace were given semi-professional status, and secured a Tier 2 license, allowing them to become a founding member of the FA Women's Championship, the second highest tier in women’s football. Then in 2019, it was announced by the club they would play under the name "Crystal Palace F.C." instead of "Crystal Palace Ladies F.C.", following the growing trend within the women's game at that time to move away from the term "Ladies".

Following mixed results in their first three years in the Women's Championship, Palace recorded back-to-back top-five finishes in the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons. It was around this time that the club officially became part of the CPFC Limited group in June 2022, and they received full professional status in 2023, followed by the securing of a Tier 1 license in April 2024, which would allow their eventual entry into the Women's Super League (WSL).

In the summer of 2023, the club appointed Grace Williams, as Head of Women’s Football, and Laura Kaminski, as Head Coach. This resulted in Palace gaining promotion to the Women's Super League as champions at the end of the 2023–24 Championship season. The club scored 55 goals – and conceded just 20 – in 22 matches. It also marked Palace’s inaugural promotion to the top-flight of women’s football. The promotion was sealed with a final-day draw against Sunderland at Selhurst Park, in front of a record crowd of 6,796.

But the following season was hugely disappointing for the club as they finished in bottom place and returned immediately to the Women's second tier.

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Former players

Club staff

Honours

Leagues

*Women's Championship
**Champions: 2023–24
*FA Women's National League South East Division One
**Champions: 2015–16
*London and South East Women's Regional Football League
**Champions: 2013–14
*South East Combination Women's Football League
**Champions: 2003–04

Cups

*Surrey County Cup
**Winners: 2010–11, 2015–16
**Runners-up: 2005–06, 2007–08, 2012–13
*Capital Women's Senior Cup
**Runners-up: 2017–18

In popular culture

In 2019, the Palace Women team featured in the first episode of ''Harry's Heroes: The Full English'', a documentary broadcast on the ITV television network. They played a team of male former professional footballers losing the match 1–0.

See also

*Crystal Palace Baltimore

References

External links

Official website

{{FA Women's Super League

Association football clubs established in 1992
Ladies
Women's football clubs in England
Women's football clubs in London
1992 establishments in England
FA Women's National League teams
Women's Super League 2 teams
Women's Super League teams