The football Club has announced that the team who currently play as Barnsley Ladies will be rebranded as Barnsley FC from next season, as the management of the team moves in-house.
The team will be playing in the fifth tier of English football following a title winning season in the season just gone.
In a club statement, Barnsley FC said : “The professionalisation of the women’s team will see Barnsley FC invest in a number of areas, including but not limited to; increased match-day support, the ability to play at Oakwell, access to sport science, training and physio teams, increased marketing and promotion and much more.
“The Club is confident that these investments will help the women’s team improve and begin their journey upwards within the women’s football pyramids.”
They also said it was a necessary step in the club’s vision to positively impact and support the local area.
Fans of the club have also welcomed the decision, with many praising the club for showing their support for the project.
Andrew Sage, owner of fan channel In The Red Corner on YouTube, said: “The news of Barnsley FC recognising the women’s team and [being] fully committed to it by going full time professional is amazing.
“[It] will project the name of Barnsley FC and help the town of Barnsley in general, its excellent news.”
The club’s announcement earlier today said that the women’s team would have access to playing at Oakwell, the club’s main stadium with a capacity of over 23,000.
In regards to the new women’s team playing there, Mr Sage said: “The fanbase of Barnsley will be and is welcoming the news and without a doubt I think the club will see some good attendances at the games.”
The club is seemingly following in the footsteps of other Yorkshire clubs such as Sheffield United and Leeds United who have both held flagship events where their own women’s teams have played in their main arenas and garnered huge crowds.
This comes after the women’s game as a whole is rapidly growing across the country, as last weekend’s FA Cup final was attended by 77,390 – breaking the record of highest crowd for a women’s domestic fixture anywhere in the world.