Riverside Olympic say they are "thrilled" to be joining Tasmania's statewide women's league.
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Football Tasmania has announced that Olympic and Glenorchy would make the Women's Super League into an eight-club competition - in line with the men's NPL Tasmania which will remain unchanged.
In a post on Facebook, Olympic said: "We're excited for the journey ahead."
They added: "It has always been our goal to provide our players, with the opportunity to play football for their club at the highest level in Tasmania and this is the last piece of the puzzle."
Following the opening of a new clubhouse at Windsor Park five years ago, the West Tamar club has some of the best facilities in the state but has struggled to be competitive since joining the NPL Tasmania in 2019.
Olympic, who finished fourth in the Women's Northern Championship last season, winning 14 of 21 games, will join Launceston United as Northern representatives in the WSL which also includes Taroona, Kingborough, Devonport, Clarence and champions South Hobart.
Football Tasmania congratulated Riverside and Glenorchy for demonstrating their commitment to fielding sides at the highest level.
Newly-employed chief executive Tony Pignata said he was thrilled by the expansion of the league.
"We know there will be increased interest in women's football following the enormous success of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023, and we know this will translate to increased interest and participation in our women's game here in Tasmania," he said.
The men's NPL Tasmania competition continues to consist of Launceston United, Launceston City, Riverside, champions Devonport, Kingborough, Clarence, South Hobart and Glenorchy but Pignata said he looked forward to expanding it to 10 teams in future.
"We had discussions with a number of other club presidents and look forward to working with clubs who aspire to compete in both the NPL and WSL in the coming years," he said.
The announcement prompted mixed reaction on social media with many respondents concerned at the continued impact the expansion would have on regional competitions.
The men's and women's Northern Championships have become dominated by clubs without statewide involvement. In the women's competition last season, the top four sides - all from non-WSL clubs - finished 22 points ahead of the bottom four.
Participating club presidents will meet with Football Tasmania in November, ahead of finalising the 2024 competitions, which will begin in March.
Rob Shaw
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
