Wellington Phoenix are in with a chance of inclusion in the next expansion of Australia's W-League, potentially seeing the Kiwi club represented in both men's and women's tournaments.
Ahead of Australia and New Zealand's joint hosting of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, the W-League will expand from nine teams to 12, hoping to capitalise on the growing women's game.
Australian Professional League (APL) managing director Danny Townsend says that one team will be added for the upcoming 2021/22 season, with two more by 2023.
The W-League hasn't expanded since 2015, when Melbourne City's women's side entered the competition.
And now with three additional teams to enter the fray in the next two years, a women's Phoenix side appears closer than ever - giving New Zealand its first professional women's team.
"While there is no finalised time frame in place, Wellington welcomes APL's announcement and the consideration to add Wellington to the W-league before 2023," says Phoenix general manager David Dome.
"We will continue to work with all major stakeholders to gain entrance as soon as possible but note there is still work to do before any entry can be confirmed."
The W-League's 2021/22 season begins on November 13, with the Phoenix potentially being the next team to be added after narrowly missing out on a licence for the 2020/21 season last year.
Central Coast and Western United are the two other teams in contention to be added in future W-League expansions.
