Charlton Athletic Women's Football Club (CAWFC) is a team founded in 1991 as Bromley Borough which plays in the Women's Championship. Also known as Croydon Women's F.C. and Charlton Athletic (2000-07), it was one of the most successful women's teams in England.
After the parent club's relegation from the Premier League, the women's team was controversially disbanded in the summer of 2007, causing almost all of the senior squad to depart, although later a rescue sponsorship package was formed allowing the women's set up to continue.
CAWFC won the FA Women's Premier League Southern Division title in 2017–18. On 27 May 2018, they beat Northern Division champions Blackburn Rovers Ladies FC 2–1 in a play-off final at Bramall Lane, Sheffield, and thus gained promotion to the FA Women's Championship, the second tier of women's football, for the season 2018–19.
In July 2023, the club was sold to SE7 Partners, a UK-based subsidiary of Global Football Partners.
History
Bromley Borough
The team was formed in 1991 as Bromley Borough by disaffected members of Millwall Lionesses' WFA Cup winning squad.
The team broke up in the aftermath of that success Hope Powell moved with team mate Sue Law to form a new club. They were initially led by Richard Hall with the support of Dan "Le Phyz" Kane. Beginning in the South East Counties League, the club quickly progressed through the divisions. After adding England player Brenda Sempare in 1992, Bromley Borough won all 16 matches in the South East Counties League Division One, scoring 142 goals in the process. The team also reached the semi-final of the Women's FA Cup, where they lost 2–0 to treble-winning Arsenal.
In 1993–94 Bromley Borough won the National League Division One South by ten points, securing promotion into the top flight of English women's football. Although they were handed a chastening 10–1 defeat by Doncaster Belles in the fifth round of the FA Women's Cup
Following a swift rise through the divisions, the club won promotion into the National Premier League.
Croydon
The club entered the top-flight as Croydon, having tied up with Croydon FC. Debbie Bampton was appointed player-manager in the 1994 close season. She built a strong team which supplied six of England's squad for the 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup including Kerry Davis as well as Bampton, Powell and Sempare. After securing a fourth-placed finish in 1994–95, in 1995–96 Bampton led the team to a domestic double. After losing both domestic Cup finals to Arsenal Ladies in 1998, the club recaptured the League title in 1999. Another League and FA Women's Cup double followed in 2000.
Takeover
At Croydon's AGM in June 2000, the club's players controversially voted to accept a hostile takeover from Charlton Athletic. Bampton resigned as manager, as both the club's committee and the FA declared affiliation with the men's Premier League club to be against the rules. The Croydon F.C. chairman, Ken Jarvie, also attempted to block the move which was eventually sanctioned.
Charlton Athletic
The club's first silverware under the new name came in the same year when the Charity Shield was shared with Arsenal, after the match resulted in a draw. Charlton reached the FA Cup final in 2003 but lost 3–0 to Fulham. In the following season (2003–04) Charlton finished runners-up in the Premier League, just one point behind winners Arsenal, and again reached the F.A. Cup final which they lost to Arsenal. The season did bring success to the club, though, with a victory over Fulham in the final of the League Cup. In 2004–05, Charlton won both the Charity Shield (beating Arsenal) and the FA Cup (beating Everton) and once more finished runners up in the league to Arsenal. In 2005–06, Charlton regained the League Cup, beating Arsenal in the Final. However, in this season, and also the 2006–07 season, Charlton finished third in the league, meaning the club missed the opportunity to participate in the UEFA Cup. In May 2007, Charlton were again runners up in the FA Cup, losing to Arsenal in the final. During these successful years under manager Keith Boanas and assistant Matt Beard, the team included several current and former England internationals, notably club captain Casey Stoney, goalkeeper Pauline Cope, Joanne Broadhurst, Eniola Aluko and Katie Chapman. Aluko and Chapman went on to play professionally in the United States.