The 2020–21
FA Women's League Cup
The Women's League Cup, also known as the Subway Women's League Cup due to sponsorship reasons, is a league cup competition in English women's association football. The competition was originally open to the eight teams in the FA WSL, but since t ...
was the tenth edition of the
FA Women's Super League
The Women's Super League (WSL), also known as the Barclays Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons, and formerly the FA WSL, is a professional association football league and the highest level of women's football in England. Currently oper ...
and
FA Women's Championship
The Women's Super League 2, also known as Barclays Women's Super League 2 for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in England, operated by WSL Football. It is the second-highest division of women's football in England. The div ...
's league cup competition. It was sponsored by
Continental AG
Continental AG, commonly known as Continental and colloquially as Conti, is a German multinational automotive parts manufacturing company. Headquartered in Hanover, Lower Saxony, it is the world's third- largest automotive supplier and the fo ...
, who sponsored the competition since its creation, and was 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 took part in the competition.
Chelsea were the defending champions and successfully defended the title by beating
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system.
Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...
in the final.
Format changes
As a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the start of the 2020–21 season was delayed, forcing many leagues and competitions to shorten their format. To reduce the total number of games, the previous format of four groups of six (with one being reduced in size by one to suit the total of 23 teams) was altered to six groups of four (with one short again), reducing the number of group stage games from five each to three each. With six group winners now, only the two best second place teams qualified for the knock-out round.
Group stage
Group A
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Group B
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Group C
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Group D
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Group E
Group F
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Ranking of second-placed teams
Due to Group E containing one fewer team, the ranking to determine which two second-placed teams progress is calculated on a points-per-game basis.
Knock-out stage
Quarter-finals
The draw for this round was made live on ''
BT Sport Score'' on 19 December 2020.
The two teams that qualified as best placed runners-up could not be drawn against the teams that topped their respective groups meaning Bristol City were not eligible to face Crystal Palace and Durham could not be drawn with Aston Villa. Manchester City's match against Chelsea was postponed following a
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
outbreak in the Manchester City first-team squad.
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Semi-finals
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Final
On 28 January, it was announced the 2021 FA Women's League Cup final would be held at
Vicarage Road
Vicarage Road is a stadium in Watford, England, and is the home stadium of EFL Championship, Championship club Watford F.C., Watford. An all-seater stadium, its current capacity is 22,200.
History
It has been the home of Watford since 1922, w ...
, the home of
Watford FC
Watford Football Club is a professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football.
The team played at several grounds in their early history, includ ...
, for the first time. The game was televised live domestically on BT Sport 2 and internationally via the FA's own streaming service the FA Player.
See also
*
2020–21 FA WSL
The 2020–21 FA WSL season (also known as the Barclays FA Women's Super League for sponsorship reasons) was the tenth edition of the FA Women's Super League (WSL) since it was formed in 2010. It was the third season after the rebranding of the f ...
*
2020–21 FA Women's Championship
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:2020-21 FA Women's League Cup
FA Women's League Cup seasons
Cup
A cup is an open-top vessel (container) used to hold liquids for drinking, typically with a flattened hemispherical shape, and often with a capacity of about . Cups may be made of pottery (including porcelain), glass, metal, wood, stone, pol ...
2020–21 in English football cups