Week 8 of the Women's Super League season is almost here, and once again, we've got an action-packed weekend! Seven games. Fourteen teams. Two days. And a Sunday fixture list that appears to have been designed by someone with absolutely no regard for the wellbeing of television remote controls. We've got Manchester United visiting the Toffees on Halloween, a potentially huge meeting between London City Lionesses and Manchester City, an actual battle of the birds on the south coast, and Chelsea travelling to The Valley. And if that wasn't enough, SIX games are taking place on Sunday! Yes, SIX. Don't say we didn't warn you. If you've got plans this Sunday, you might want to reconsider them. Unless those plans already involve sitting in front of a television watching football, in which case, excellent planning. And, as usual, we've got your viewing arrangements covered! Whether you're watching in the UK, planning to enjoy some free-to-air football, or joining us from somewhere else around the world, we'll point you towards the right channels and streams. International viewers, don't worry. We haven't left you stranded in the away end. There's a link for you further down! All kick-off times below are in GMT. --------------------------------------------------- SATURDAY 31 OCTOBER – A HALLOWEEN SPECIAL! Everton vs Manchester United – 12:45 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Mix (Freeview Channel 11) We begin at Goodison Park, where Everton welcome Manchester United for a Saturday lunchtime showdown. It's Halloween, so the Toffees will be hoping the Red Devils don't give them the fright of their lives. United have been finding their feet recently, going unbeaten in their last four league matches. Everton, meanwhile, have lost their last two league games and could really do with a treat rather than another trick. And here's something to make Everton supporters check behind the sofa: according to WSL Football's preview, Everton have never beaten Manchester United in any competition. That's not a particularly sweet statistic for the Toffees. Will Everton finally unwrap three points against United, or will the Red Devils make it another afternoon of misery on Merseyside? There's only one way to find out. Well, two if you count watching the highlights afterwards, but where's the fun in that? And there's some excellent news for UK viewers! Alongside Sky Sports Premier League, the match is also being shown on Sky Mix, available free-to-air on Freeview Channel 11! Yes, free football on a Saturday lunchtime! Your bank account can breathe a sigh of relief. It won't even need to defend a corner. --------------------------------------------------- SUNDAY 1 NOVEMBER – SIX GAMES. SIX! Right, who's responsible for organising Sunday's fixture list? Because somebody clearly woke up one morning and thought: "Do you know what football fans need? Six matches on the same day, three of them kicking off at exactly the same time." Wonderful. We've got two matches at midday, three at 2pm and another at 2:30pm. Your Sunday roast might have to be rescheduled. Or eaten in front of the television. Either works. --------------------------------------------------- THE MIDDAY DOUBLE-HEADER – 12:00 GMT London City Lionesses vs Manchester City – 12:00 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League and Sky One UK Radio: BBC Radio 5 Live First up, the Lionesses welcome Manchester City to the Copperjax Community Stadium. And this one could be an absolute cracker. London City sit third, Manchester City are second, and both sides have been scoring goals for fun. City have scored 20 league goals, London City have 19, and Khadija Shaw has already helped herself to eight. Eight goals in seven games! At this rate, the opposition might have to put a second goalkeeper in the net. Although we're fairly sure the rulebook would have something to say about that. London City have plenty of attacking talent of their own, with Alexia Putellas, Kadidiatou Diani and Daniëlle van de Donk all getting in on the act. The Lionesses will be looking to roar their way to victory, but City aren't exactly known for rolling over and having their tummies tickled. Both sides drew their last league matches, so they'll be desperate to get back to winning ways. Could London City put a serious dent in City's title ambitions? Or will City tame the Lionesses? Either way, we could be in for a roaring good time. And if you're away from the television, BBC Radio 5 Live has live commentary! Perfect if you're driving, working or desperately trying to convince someone that listening to football on the radio counts as quality family time. --------------------------------------------------- Arsenal vs Aston Villa – 12:00 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports Mix Meanwhile, over at the Emirates, Arsenal welcome Aston Villa. The Gunners have finally remembered where they keep the ammunition. After five league matches without a victory, Arsenal came from behind to beat North London rivals Tottenham last weekend. And if that wasn't enough, Alessia Russo went and scored a hat-trick against Benfica in the Champions League. Three goals in one night. Somebody clearly remembered to recharge the batteries in Arsenal's shooting boots. But Villa aren't travelling down to London just to admire the Emirates Stadium and buy a fridge magnet from the club shop. They're arriving after back-to-back league victories, including a 3-2 win over Everton. So we've got two teams finding form, two teams desperate for another victory and one question: Will Arsenal keep firing, or will Villa park their ambitions firmly in the Gunners' way? Either way, there's certainly no shortage of ammunition for this fixture. I'll see myself out. --------------------------------------------------- THE 14:00 GMT TRIPLE-HEADER – THREE GAMES AT ONCE! Now things get interesting. Three matches kicking off simultaneously. Three! If you have three televisions, congratulations. Your living room is about to resemble the control room at a television broadcaster. If you've only got one, you'll be switching channels so often that your remote might request a transfer. All three matches are available live on the official WSL Football website and WSL YouTube channel, with Sky Sports coverage as well! And for Sky viewers, there's also Sky Sports Multiview via Sky Q and Sky Glass. So you can enjoy the action without needing to grow another pair of eyes. --------------------------------------------------- Birmingham City vs Tottenham Hotspur – 14:00 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports Mix We head to St Andrew's, where Birmingham City welcome Tottenham Hotspur. Birmingham finally picked up their first league victory of the season against Charlton last weekend. Spurs, meanwhile, have lost three consecutive league matches. Three defeats on the spin. At this point, Tottenham's recent league form is starting to resemble a washing machine cycle. Plenty of spinning, but they're not getting anywhere. The good news for Spurs is that they bounced back with a 6-1 cup victory against Bristol City in midweek. Six goals! Clearly somebody found the instruction manual. There's also a potentially historic occasion for Tottenham captain Drew Spence, who could become the WSL's all-time record appearance maker with 217 appearances if she features. That's rather impressive. Birmingham will be hoping to build on their first victory, while Tottenham will be desperate to get their league campaign moving in the right direction again. Will the Blues leave Spurs feeling blue? Or will Tottenham finally get things back on track? Free online streams: Watch Birmingham vs Tottenham on WSL Football Watch Birmingham vs Tottenham on WSL YouTube --------------------------------------------------- Brighton & Hove Albion vs Crystal Palace – 14:00 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports+ (Virgin Media Channel 504 / Sky Channel 404) Right, everybody. It's time for the ultimate battle of the birds. THE SEAGULLS VS THE EAGLES! Forget your ordinary football rivalries. We're going full ornithology for this one. Brighton come into the game after beating West Ham in the league and putting six past Wolves in the cup. Palace, meanwhile, have suffered defeats to Chelsea and London City in recent days. The Eagles could certainly do with spreading their wings again. Brighton's Kiko Seike has scored four league goals this season, while Palace will be looking for somebody to provide that extra bit of attacking spark. And with local bragging rights on the line, things could get rather heated. Can Brighton soar to victory? Will Palace swoop in and steal the points? Will somebody end up with egg on their face? And, most importantly, will the result send one set of supporters into a flap? Sorry, these bird puns are getting completely out of hand. Although I'd argue they're still considerably better than a poultry performance. Free online streams: Watch Brighton vs Crystal Palace on WSL Football Watch Brighton vs Crystal Palace on WSL YouTube --------------------------------------------------- West Ham United vs Liverpool – 14:00 GMT UK TV: Sky Sports+ via the red button And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's Hammer time! West Ham welcome Liverpool to Victoria Road Stadium in Dagenham. Both teams have managed just one victory each in their last five league matches, so it's fair to say they're both looking to turn things around. West Ham will be hoping to nail down three points, while Liverpool will be desperate to stop their recent results from slipping through their fingers. The Hammers did enjoy some midweek cup success thanks to two goals from Wales international Ffion Morgan. Meanwhile, Liverpool salvaged a late draw against London City Lionesses last weekend, courtesy of an own goal. Not necessarily the most glamorous method of finding the net, but they all count. The Reds will be hoping to turn that fighting spirit into three points. West Ham, though, will fancy their chances of hammering home an advantage. Will the Hammers hit the nail on the head? Or will Liverpool leave them feeling absolutely flattened? One thing's for certain: one or both sets of supporters could be left feeling rather rusty if the recent results continue. Free online streams: Watch West Ham vs Liverpool on WSL Football Watch West Ham vs Liverpool on WSL YouTube --------------------------------------------------- THE BBC'S FREE-TO-AIR SHOWDOWN – 14:30 GMT Charlton Athletic vs Chelsea – 14:30 GMT UK TV: BBC Two and BBC iPlayer And finally, we're heading to The Valley! Charlton Athletic welcome Chelsea in a London encounter that looks rather daunting for the hosts. It's bottom versus top. Chelsea are unbeaten after seven league games, while Charlton have lost all seven of theirs. The league leaders are riding high, while the Addicks are still searching for their first points. In other words, Charlton have quite a mountain to climb. Which is rather unfortunate when you're playing at a place called The Valley. Chelsea arrive in excellent form after beating Roma 2-0 in Europe, and they'll be looking to keep their winning momentum going. Charlton, meanwhile, will be hoping that football's famous unpredictability finally works in their favour. Could this be the weekend they pull off an almighty shock? Could Chelsea's unbeaten run suddenly come crashing down? Could the Addicks finally kick-start their season? Or will the league leaders simply continue doing what league leaders tend to do? Whatever happens, Charlton will need to bring their very best to the party. And Chelsea certainly won't be turning up just to enjoy the scenery. But here's the really good news: this match is FREE-TO-AIR on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer! Yes, another opportunity to watch WSL football without having to dig into your wallet. Your bank account is now two clean sheets up this weekend. And who said financial management couldn't involve football? --------------------------------------------------- INTERNATIONAL VIEWERS – DON'T WORRY, WE'VE GOT YOU COVERED! Watching from outside the UK? Well, fear not! We haven't forgotten you, abandoned you or sent you off on a wild goose chase looking for television rights information. WSL Football has published its official Matchweek 8 international TV guide! It covers broadcasters and streaming platforms across more than 100 territories. Simply click the link, select your country using the dropdown menu, and you'll be shown the available viewing arrangements for your location. No need to scour the internet for hours. No need to guess which broadcaster has the rights. And, hopefully, no need to spend half the first half staring at a loading screen. WSL Football – Official Matchweek 8 International TV Guide Please remember that viewing rights and streaming availability vary depending on where you live. Because apparently football broadcasting rights weren't complicated enough already. --------------------------------------------------- WSL FOOTBALL HAS ALSO PUBLISHED ITS OFFICIAL MATCHWEEK 8 PREVIEW! And if you're wondering what else to look out for this weekend, WSL Football has now published its full Matchweek 8 preview! It covers all seven matches, including recent results, players to watch, previous meetings and some intriguing stories heading into the weekend. There's Manchester United's unbeaten run, Arsenal's attempts to build on their derby victory, the London City–Manchester City showdown, Drew Spence's potential milestone and Chelsea's trip to The Valley. So whether you're looking for a bit of pre-match reading, deciding which game to watch, or simply hunting for some statistics to impress your mates, it's well worth a look. Read WSL Football's Official Matchweek 8 Preview It's much more informative than my growing collection of bird puns. Although, admittedly, that's not a particularly high bar to clear. --------------------------------------------------- RIGHT THEN, OVER TO YOU, r/soccer! Seven games. Two days. Six matches on Sunday. A Halloween opener, a battle of the birds, the Hammers looking to hit their target, the Gunners looking to keep firing, and the Lionesses looking to roar their way past City. We've got something for everyone. Well, everyone except those hoping for a peaceful Sunday afternoon. So, a few questions before the weekend begins: Can Everton finally beat Manchester United, or will the Red Devils deliver a Halloween fright? Can London City Lionesses make a serious statement against Manchester City? Have Arsenal finally rediscovered their shooting boots? Will Birmingham make it two league wins in a row, or can Tottenham put their losing streak behind them? Who wins the great Seagulls-versus-Eagles showdown? Can West Ham hammer Liverpool, or will the Reds have the final say? And could Charlton possibly pull off one of the biggest surprises of the season against Chelsea? Which matches are you watching this weekend, and what are your predictions? And if you're planning on watching all six Sunday fixtures, I salute your dedication to football, your ability to multitask and, most importantly, your poor television remote control. It's about to go through 90 minutes of hard work. Several times over. --------------------------------------------------- Enjoy Matchweek 8, everyone! And may your streams be stable, your goals be spectacular, and your remote batteries survive until the final whistle!   submitted by   /u/MonthRemarkable9919 [link]   [comments]