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Manchester United Women are set to take part in a lucrative new seven-a-side football tournament at the end of the season.
Marc Skinner’s side have been in fantastic form this year in both league and cup.
They made it to a third consecutive FA Cup final last weekend when they expertly defeated Manchester City 2-0.
They also sit third in the Women’s Super League table, six points behind leaders Chelsea.
The Telegraph reports that their season could be even busier as “Manchester United will take part in a lucrative new seven-a-side women’s tournament which could see them pocket nearly £2 million.”
“Winners of inaugural event will land [a] £1.9m prize, dwarfing the Champions League victors’ purse of £850,000 and FA Cup’s £430,000.”
There are eight teams slated to feature in the World Sevens Football (W7F) next month. The clubs are due to be confirmed imminently and it is understood United are one of those invited to play.
The tournament will take place in Portugal from the 21st of May until the 23rd.
Bayern Munich are also understood to be in line to compete in the tournament alongside United. Each club can choose to take whichever squad members they wish, but United are expected to take a strong team to compete.
There have been questions placed on player welfare but the sheer scale of prize money may force United’s hand.
The tournament is funded by United States-based philanthropist Jennifer Mackesy. Eight teams will compete and there will be 16 games in total.
The teams will be split into two groups of four. All teams in the group will play each other over the course of two days. The top two sides in each group will then advance to the semi-finals. The tournament will conclude with the final and a third place playoff.
The pitch will be half the size of a traditional pitch and games would be 30 minutes in length, split into two halves. Extra-time will be played in the event of a draw after the end of regulation time.
Featured image Ben Roberts Photo via Getty Images
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