Massive W-League matches coming to Bankwest, Marvel

The W-League is taking a leaf out of the English Women's Super League success and taking some of the league's biggest games to Australia's biggest stadiums.

The rapid rise of women's football in Europe and English Women's Super League as the pre-eminent force was captured perfectly earlier this year when Manchester United and Manchester City nearly sold out Etihad Stadium for the women's derby.

Jacynta Galabaadarachchi's West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur then followed suit drawing well over 20,000 to London Stadium.

The resulting exposure for women's football is something the W-League is keen to replicate in its quest to raise Australia's competition to within the top-five leagues in the world, no mean feat considering the competition that's on offer.

PLUS...

The 5 W-League matches we're most excited for

With the release of the W-League draw not a second too early, here's our top five picks for the matches that'll keep you on the edge of your seat this season.

Temper your expectations?

Technically there's only one derby at a premium venue, with Melbourne's big fixtures limited to Lakeside and ABD Stadiums.

All matches are also part of W-League double-headers taking place before the A-League sides do battle, so it's nothing we haven't seen before at W-League level in that respect.

But given the success we've seen overseas in publicising key matchups as a way of encouraging big crowds to women's sport, it will be interesting to see whether FFA - and particularly, the clubs - can replicate that success this season.

The key may be encouraging a new level of active support to W-League matches, which the following encounters (hopefully) can pioneer: