Williamson 'wouldn't rule out' strike over World Cup Qualifiers Schedule

England captain Leah Williamson has said she would "never rule out" strike action as a way for players to press governing bodies over the world cup qualifiers schedule, raising the stakes as the Lionesses prepare for a run of qualifiers that has left several players recovering from injury.

Captain flags strike as an option, not a plan

Williamson, 28, who led England to back-to-back European titles, said she would not take the possibility of strike action off the table if players feel they are not being heard. Speaking before England's game against Ukraine next Tuesday, she said she had "not had any conversations about this right now, " but added that "if a group of people don't feel like they're getting listened to, then history suggests that's the only way they can be heard" and that she "would never take it off the table. "

Selections, recent return and fitness details

Williamson missed five months recovering from knee surgery after England's victory at Euro 2025, then returned to action at the start of December and helped Arsenal win the Women's Champions Cup in February. Her England call-up for this month's World Cup qualifiers was her first since the 2025 Euros final in Switzerland, after she also dealt with a calf strain during rehabilitation.

Injuries adding to concerns about the World Cup Qualifiers Schedule

Managers and unions point to an accumulation of matches as a risk to players' bodies. The players' union FifPro released a report in November saying that last year was the first time since it began collecting data in 2020 that the top 15 players in the world had all played 50 games or more in a season. Keira Walsh urged governing bodies in November to "listen to the players" about the congested fixture schedule, and Lucy Bronze has discussed overloading and underloading in FifPro's Shine A Light report.

Who has been affected and where the qualifiers land

A number of Lionesses missed games after the Euros, with injured players named in the squad list including Lucy Bronze, Lauren James, Michelle Agyemang, Hannah Hampton, Alex Greenwood, Lauren Hemp, Beth Mead, Ella Toone, Niamh Charles and Chloe Kelly. England are due to play Ukraine and Iceland in their upcoming qualifiers; one headline note in the coverage names the Ukraine World Cup qualifier as set for Hill Dickinson Stadium, while other coverage places the Ukraine match in Turkey and the Iceland match in Nottingham next week—these location details are unclear in the provided context. England's home Women's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine on 9 is also mentioned but the full date detail is unclear in the provided context.

Players offering data and the FA's response

Williamson said players have been "forthcoming" with training-load and female-health data, sharing that information with stakeholders in an attempt to shape policy on rest periods and alignment between governing bodies. She praised the FA's efforts to prioritise welfare and singled out Sarina Wiegman for being "passionate" about player welfare, while saying that a 10-day break given to those called into the squad ahead of Tuesday's Ukraine qualifier felt like a luxury and was rare in recent schedules.

Unions urge caution as the game grows

The Professional Footballers' Association warned that the women's game is "going through a period of intense change" and said that "innovation and calendar expansion cannot come at the expense of player welfare, or we risk repeating mistakes that have already been made in the men's game. " Williamson echoed that tension, saying the more successful players and teams become—across club and country—the less rest players tend to get and the higher the injury risk becomes.

Williamson said she and her teammates would still prefer collaboration: "I don't think that's where we are now. I think we're still in a place where we can collaborate, listen and educate, " she said. For now the next confirmed event in the schedule is England's qualifier against Ukraine next Tuesday and the team's subsequent matches in the current qualifiers window.