The Women’s Professional Game Academy is a key part of the talent pipeline for women’s professional football. All 24 clubs, which make up both the Barclays Women’s Super League (BWSL) and Barclays Women’s Championship (BWC) will have an Academy programme and will cater for the development of talented players between the ages of 14 to 20. The FA provides a limited amount of funding for the operation of the academies to these clubs, and does not have a direct role in the operation of the league. It is likely that responsibility will eventually go to the NewCo (the new organisation formed by the BWSL and BWC as they move away to be independent from The FA). However, this is likely to be 5 years off, so the issue with branding remains complex.

The branding currently adopts The FA brand crest, but as the FA do not operate the programme this has been asked to change. However it also cannot take on the branding of the BWSL or BWC as it has no association with Barclays. Therefore, it sits somewhere in between the two. As a result a new interim brand for the Women’s Professional Game Academy needs to be created until such time as a wholesale ownership change has happened.

The task was to create a brand which reflected the talent of the future. It needed to consider the inclusion of young and diverse players from Gen Alpha. It’s also important to note the significance of this programme in the women’s talent pyramid, so a reference to that formed part of the visual identity. It needed to feel fresh and accessible, not corporate. Its future association will be with BWSL and BWC so the interim branding solution should lean towards them, certainly in terms of colours but also stand alone.