2019–20 FA Women's League Cup

2019–20 FA Women's League Cup
Tournament details
CountryEngland
Dates21 September 2019 –
29 February 2020
Teams23
Defending championsManchester City
Final positions
ChampionsChelsea (1st title)
Runner-upArsenal
Tournament statistics
Matches played60
Goals scored242 (4.03 per match)
Top goal scorer(s)Bethany England (7)

The 2019–20 FA Women's League Cup was the ninth edition of the FA Women's Super League and FA Women's Championship's league cup competition. It was sponsored by Continental AG, who sponsored the competition since its creation, and is officially known as the FA Women's Continental League Cup for sponsorship reasons. All 23 teams from the FA Women's Super League and FA Women's Championship contested the competition - the largest field in the history of the cup and an increase of one from the previous year's competition.

Manchester City were the defending champions. As of the start the competition, only Manchester City and Arsenal had previously won the cup in the eight seasons it has previously been contested in.

Format changes

The 2019–20 Women's League Cup kept the same format including an initial group stage that has been used since the 2017–18 edition but expanded by one to accommodate the increase in teams in the top two divisions of women's football to 23. The season was intended to be the first in which the FA WSL and FA Championship both had twelve teams,[1] allowing for a league cup group stage with four equal groups of six teams. However, the demotion of Yeovil Town from the WSL to the third tier FA Women's National League[2] meant that, though the competition would have its highest ever number of participants, one group would still have to contain only five clubs.[3]

Group stage

Group A

Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SHU AST LIV DUR COV BLB
1 Sheffield United 5 3 0 1 1 14 8 +6 10 Advance to knock-out stage 2–2 4–1
2 Aston Villa 5 3 0 1 1 12 8 +4 10 3–1 2–0 5–2
3 Liverpool 5 3 0 0 2 16 7 +9 9 2–3 3–1
4 Durham 5 3 0 0 2 11 8 +3 9 0–4 3–0 4–0
5 Coventry United 5 0 3 0 2 6 14 −8 6 2–2 1–5 1–1
6 Blackburn Rovers 5 0 0 1 4 5 19 −14 1 0–6 1–3
Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
Liverpool2–3Sheffield United
Report
Attendance: 687
Referee: Kristian Silcock
Durham3–0Aston Villa
Report
New Ferens Park, Durham
Attendance: 359
Referee: Jonny Urwin
Coventry United1–1Blackburn Rovers
Report
Penalties
4–3
Attendance: 245
Referee: Amy Fearn

Aston Villa3–1Sheffield United
Report
Trevor Brown Memorial Ground, Boldmere
Attendance: 405
Referee: Ashley List
Coventry United1–5Liverpool
Report
Attendance: 802
Blackburn Rovers1–3Durham
Report
Sir Tom Finney Stadium, Bamber Bridge
Attendance: 458
Referee: Magdalena Golba

Aston Villa2–0Liverpool
Report
Trevor Brown Memorial Ground, Boldmere
Attendance: 355
Referee: Scott Tallis
Durham4–0Coventry United
Report
New Ferens Park, Durham
Attendance: 321
Referee: Melissa Burgin
Sheffield United4–1Blackburn Rovers
Report
Attendance: 248
Referee: Lauren Impey

Group stage
Coventry United2–2Aston Villa
Report
Penalties
3–1
Attendance: 286
Referee: Amy Barber
Durham0–4Sheffield United
Report
New Ferens Park, Durham
Referee: Lucy Oliver
Blackburn Rovers0–6Liverpool
Report
Sir Tom Finney Stadium, Bamber Bridge
Attendance: 392
Referee: Edward Duckworth

Liverpool3–1Durham
Report
Attendance: 215
Referee: Dale Baines
Sheffield United2–2Coventry United
Report
Penalties
1–2
Referee: Jack Hall
Aston Villa5–2Blackburn Rovers
Report
Trevor Brown Memorial Ground, Boldmere
Attendance: 183
Referee: Andrew Humphries

Group B

Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ARS BHA BRI LON CHA LCL
1 Arsenal 5 4 0 1 0 25 0 +25 13 Advance to knock-out stage 7–0 9–0 4–0
2 Brighton & Hove Albion 5 3 1 0 1 13 4 +9 11 0–0 1–2
3 Bristol City 5 3 0 1 1 11 11 0 10 3–0 1–1
4 London Bees 5 1 1 0 3 3 17 −14 5 0–5 0–0
5 Charlton Athletic 5 1 0 1 3 3 12 −9 4 0–3 2–5 1–0
6 London City Lionesses 5 0 1 0 4 3 14 −11 2 0–5 2–4 0–3
Source: [4]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
Charlton Athletic0–3Brighton & Hove Albion
The Oakwood, Crayford
London City Lionesses0–5Arsenal
Report
Attendance: 577
Referee: Jacob Miles
Bristol City3–0London Bees
Report
Attendance: 337
Referee: Elizabeth Simms

Arsenal4–0Charlton Athletic
Report
Attendance: 1,171
Referee: Andrew Humphries
London City Lionesses0–3London Bees
Report
Attendance: 209
Referee: Jade Wardle

London Bees0–0Charlton Athletic
Report
Penalties
4–2
Attendance: 162
Referee: Cristiana Hattersley

London Bees0–5Brighton & Hove Albion
Report
Attendance: 152
Referee: Stacey Pearson
Charlton Athletic1–0London City Lionesses
Report
The Oakwood, Crayford
Attendance: 226
Referee: Chloe-Ann Anderson
Arsenal7–0Bristol City
Report
Attendance: 805
Referee: Louise Saunders

Arsenal9–0London Bees
Report
Referee: Lisa Benn
London City Lionesses2–4Brighton & Hove Albion
Report
Attendance: 43
Referee: Abigail Byrne
Charlton Athletic2–5Bristol City
Report
The Oakwood, Crayford
Attendance: 114

Group C

Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MNU MCI BIR EVE LEI
1 Manchester United 4 4 0 0 0 19 2 +17 12 Advance to knock-out stage 2–0 11–1
2 Manchester City 4 3 0 0 1 11 4 +7 9 2–1 5–0
3 Birmingham City 4 2 0 0 2 8 6 +2 6 1–3 1–0
4 Everton 4 1 0 0 3 5 8 −3 3 0–3 1–4
5 Leicester City 4 0 0 0 4 2 25 −23 0 1–5 0–4
Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
Birmingham City1–0Everton
Report
Attendance: 511
Referee: Lucy Oliver
Manchester City5–0Leicester City
Report
Attendance: 1,403
Referee: Thomas Kirk

Manchester United2–0Manchester City
Report
Attendance: 4,042
Referee: Amy Fearn
Leicester City1–5Birmingham City
Report
Attendance: 368
Referee: Scott Simpson

Everton0–3Manchester United
Report
Attendance: 361
Referee: Rebecca Welsh
Manchester City2–1Birmingham City
Report
Attendance: 1,178
Referee: Elizabeth Simms

Everton1–4Manchester City
Report
Attendance: 327
Referee: Philip Jones
Manchester United11–1Leicester City
Report
Attendance: 1,127

Birmingham City1–3Manchester United
Report
Attendance: 442
Referee: Helen Conley
Leicester City0–4Everton
Report
Attendance: 342
Referee: Amy Fearn

Group D

Pos Team Pld W WPEN LPEN L GF GA GD Pts Qualification CHE REA WHU TOT CRY LEW
1 Chelsea 5 4 0 1 0 13 3 +10 13 Advance to knock-out stage 1–1 2–0 5–1
2 Reading 5 3 1 0 1 14 4 +10 11 0–1 6–0 3–2
3 West Ham United 5 3 0 1 1 13 5 +8 10 2–2 7–0 3–1
4 Tottenham Hotspur 5 2 1 0 2 12 11 +1 8 0–4 6–0
5 Crystal Palace 5 1 0 0 4 3 21 −18 3 0–3 0–3
6 Lewes 5 0 0 0 5 6 17 −11 0 1–2 2–3
Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
Lewes2–3Crystal Palace
Report
Attendance: 341
Referee: Alex Bradley
Chelsea2–0West Ham United
Report
Attendance: 3,041
Referee: Kirsty Dowle
Tottenham Hotspur0–4Reading
Report
Attendance: 533
Referee: Robert Whitton

Crystal Palace0–3Chelsea
Report
Attendance: 807
Referee: Abigail Bryne
Reading3–2Lewes
Report
Attendance: 709
Referee: Louise Sanders
West Ham United2–2Tottenham Hotspur
Report
Penalties
2–4
Rush Green Stadium, Romford
Attendance: 749
Referee: Elizabeth Simms

Lewes1–2Chelsea
Report
Attendance: 1,019
Referee: Louise McWhinnie
Crystal Palace0–3Tottenham Hotspur
Report
Attendance: 308
Reading0–1West Ham United
Report
Attendance: 877
Referee: Ryan Atkins

Chelsea5–1Tottenham Hotspur
Report
Attendance: 1,999
Referee: Lisa Benn
West Ham United3–1Lewes
Report
Rush Green Stadium, Romford
Attendance: 652
Referee: Kirsty Dowle
Reading6–0Crystal Palace
Report
Attendance: 744
Referee: Emily Heaslip

Chelsea1–1Reading
Report
Penalties
2–4
Attendance: 1,783
Referee: Paul Johnson
Tottenham Hotspur6–0Lewes
Report
Attendance: 205
West Ham United7–0Crystal Palace
Report
Rush Green Stadium, Romford
Attendance: 336
Referee: Aji Ajibola

Knock-out stage

Quarter-finals

The draw for this round was made live via Talksport 2 on 16 December 2019 with the winners of each group all receiving home advantage. The round took place on Wednesday 15 January 2020 and contained two FA Women's Championship teams, double the amount that reached the quarter-finals the previous season.

Chelsea3–1Aston Villa
Report
Attendance: 1,799
Referee: Louise Saunders

Arsenal1–0Reading
Report
Referee: Emily Heaslip

Sheffield United0–4Manchester City
Report
Attendance: 1,521
Referee: Jane Simms

Manchester United2–1Brighton & Hove Albion
Report
Attendance: 642
Referee: Martin Woods

Semi-finals

The draw for this round took place on 18 January 2019 and was broadcast live on BT Sport Score. The round took place on 29 January 2020 and contained the same four semi-finalists as the previous season.

Arsenal2–1Manchester City
Report
Referee: Abigail Byrne

Manchester United0–1Chelsea
Report
Attendance: 1,044
Referee: Elizabeth Sims

Final

Beth England scoring the winning goal.

On 16 January, it was announced the 2020 FA Women's League Cup Final would be held at the City Ground, the home of Nottingham Forest, for the first time.[5] The game was televised live domestically on BT Sport and internationally via the FA's own streaming service the FA Player.[6]

Arsenal1–2Chelsea
Report
Attendance: 6,743
Referee: Helen Conley

See also

References

  1. ^ "Women's Super League: New full-time, professional era - all you need to know". BBC Sport. 9 September 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Yeovil Town Ladies: Championship licence denied and club to go down two tiers". BBC Sport. 17 May 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  3. ^ "Women's Continental League Cup: Manchester rivals to meet in group stage". BBC Sport. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  4. ^ "FA Womens Super cup 2019/20; group stage: B". playmakerstats.com. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  5. ^ "Conti Cup Final to be held at Forest". womenscompetitions.thefa.com.
  6. ^ The Football Association. "League Cup final on FA Player". www.thefa.com.