Last weekend saw the first matchday of the revamped and rebranded top flight of French women’s football, now known as the Première Ligue. The intention behind the new format, backed by an increased budget, is to accelerate professionalism and, in the words of the league president, Jean-Michel Aulas, to turn France’s top flight into the “best professional women’s league in Europe”.
While the first batch of games indicated business as usual for the time being – there were comfortable wins for the usual suspects in Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain and Paris FC – there was nevertheless a conspicuous absence from the 12 participating clubs.
