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Assistant Coach, David Brownlie has departed the club to pursue opportunities overseas.

Brownlie joined the club in December, 2025 alongside Head Coach, Iain Robinson, as the pair sought to lead the women of steel from the threat of relegation to the second-tier.

After successfully preserving our top-flight status for the forthcoming campaign, Brownlie will depart Lanarkshire to pursue a full-time coaching opportunity overseas.

“It’s a real moment of mixed emotions for myself,” Brownlie said.

“I’ve absolutely loved my time at the club. The squad have been an absolute pleasure to work with, and towards the end of the season, you could really see our ideas for the club coming to fruition.

“To have achieved safety for the club, finishing the season unbeaten in the split is a real proud moment, and I’m pleased to be departing the club on a positive note.

“After working on my UEFA A-license this year, an opportunity presented itself to me, working full-time in football overseas, and it was a decision I simply couldn’t turn down. I will be following the club’s progress closely, and I wish everyone all the best for the future.”

The former Rangers academy graduate concluded his playing career in the Southside of Glasgow, with Pollok before embarking on his coaching pathway. After departing Newlandsfield, Brownlie sought to utilise his vast experience, and integrate himself as a football coach, achieving his UEFA C-License in 2022 before upgrading to the UEFA B-License in 2024. Brownlie then undertook his UEFA A-License qualification process this year.

Graduating from University after the summer of 2023, Brownlie sought to experience his first academy coaching role, joining the Rangers academy before soon settling into the position of coaching the girls U17/18s academy team alongside Motherwell Head Coach, Iain Robinson.

With Robinson replacing the then departing Head Coach Craig Joyce in Glasgow after being headhunted to become the Head Coach of Queen’s Park, he sought to bring Brownlie alongside in the dugout.

In their final season in charge, Robinson and Brownlie had the Spiders sat comfortably in the final promotion-playoff position in the Scottish Women’s Premier League 2 table, one point shy of Boroughmuir Thistle in second, with ambitions of restoring the club’s top-flight status.

However, the sudden departure of Paul Brownlie after several years at the helm of Motherwell Women presented an irresistible opportunity in ML1.

“It’s absolutely gutting to see David depart the club, but we absolutely understand the importance of the opportunity available to him,” Head Coach Iain Robinson added.

“David has been a vital part of everything we have started to build this season, and has progressed the development of the playing squad at the club.

“The coaching staff, and the entire playing squad thank David for everything he has done for the club, and we wish him the absolute best in the future.”

It’s day one of 2026/27 pre-season for the Motherwell squad as they get back together after the summer break.

Alfred Johansson is the new manager of Motherwell Football Club. 

On his first day as the new boss, the Swede speaks about his journey in football, pre-season plans, the quick turnaround until competitive action and what he wants his team to look like.

Alfred Johansson is the new manager of Motherwell Football Club.

The 35-year-old Swede becomes the 31st manager of the club.

“We are delighted to welcome Alfred to the football club,” chairman Kyrk Macmillan said.

“Following the same data-driven process that we undertook to appoint the previous two managers of the football club, we believe Alfred is an excellent fit here at Motherwell. The data plays a key role to ensure the game model aligns with how we want to play and continues our evolution, but the process is also blended with ensuring we bring good people to the club.

“We met with Alfred on a number of occasions, and he stood out as the best candidate to continue our journey at the club. It became evident from our conversations that there was a clear alignment between both parties, and we have built a strong relationship already. Identifying and appointing someone that fits with the type of people we want to work with is equally as important.

“There is a strong belief that Alfred has the correct characteristics to lead and deliver on his ideas. He is a determined and ambitious young manager who wants to continue the success we had last season.

“It was important for the squad that we completed our detailed process of recruiting a new manager, but we were also conscious of time. With the players back in for pre-season this week, Alfred can begin working with his new squad ahead of a busy and exciting period for the football club.

“We were delighted with the connection our fans had with the team last season and we hope to take that even further this campaign”

Johansson arrives off the back of a two-and-a-half-year stint as manager of Norwegian top league side Rosenborg.

His coaching career began in Sweden, where he started out working with the youth squads at Enköpings SK in 2011 before serving as academy manager at Djurgårdens IF until 2015.

His strong academic results gave Johansson a strong grounding to begin his journey in football, despite not playing the game professionally.

He then moved to FC Copenhagen to work as youth manager and chief analyst for the under-19 squad. A brief spell back home in Sweden with AIK’s under-17 squad in 2018 was followed by a return to the Danish capital to take up the position of youth manager.

Impressing by guiding the Under 17 squad to the top of the DBU U17 Drenge Ligaen, he progressed to work with Copenhagen’s Under 19 squad in 2022, which saw Johansson build a strong, talented group that could compete at European level, defeating the likes of Bayern Munich and Manchester United in the UEFA Youth League.

He then was appointed manager of Rosenborg in 2023 at the age of just 33. In his maiden season in professional management, he guided Rosenborg to a fourth-place finish in the Norwegian top-flight, securing a return to European football after a 12-month absence, by winning over half of their league matches.

In a strong first season that saw Johansson pick up the league’s manager of the month award in August, he guided Rosenborg to the cusp of Conference League league phase football, defeating Banga Gargždai and Hammarby in the second and third rounds. After defeating Bundesliga side Mainz at home in the first leg of the playoff round, the Germans won on home turf to progress to the next round in the second leg.

For the 2025 league campaign, Johansson and Rosenborg finished seventh in the standings, keeping 11 clean sheets in the process, the second highest in the division and also picked up a second manager of the month accolade.

Johansson departed the club seven league games into his third season in May 2026. Managing 131 matches in his tenure in Norway, Johansson accumulated 71 wins and 21 draws.

He will now begin work ahead of pre-season, with all football staff remaining at the club.

“This is a huge honour for me,” manager Alfred Johansson said.

“To work at this football club and to lead is a privilege. I’ve analysed the club closely, and the direction that it’s going in is of huge importance to me. Last season was hugely successful, and I want to be able to carry this success forward. The squad of players we have is exciting, and we will get to work straight away.

“There is no time to waste with European football next month and the league season starting in a few weeks. I can’t wait to get to know all the players and staff at the club, but most importantly, I’m looking forward to meeting the supporters. I’ll see you all very soon.”

Our 2026/26 William Hill Premiership campaign will start with a trip to Easter Road to face Hibernian. 

Kick off is at 4:30pm on Sunday 2 August with the match being broadcast live on Sky Sports.

Our first home game of the season is on Saturday 8 August against Falkirk.

The festive period is jam-packed once again, with the return of Boxing Day fixtures to the schedule. We travel to Celtic Park on Saturday 26 December for a 3pm kick-off before travelling north to Aberdeen on Wednesday 30 December to round off 2026.

Our final match prior to the split is against St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park on Saturday 10 April.

All fixtures are subject to change.

Motherwell discovered this afternoon that they would be facing Havnar Bóltfelag of the Faroe Islands in the second round of the UEFA Conference League. 

Otherwise known as HB Torshavn (HB), Motherwell and HB have already met in European competition.

Back in 1994, Motherwell were drawn against HB in the Preliminary Round of the UEFA Cup. Playing the first leg at Fir Park, Alex McLeish’s side cruised to a 3-0 win thanks to goals from Tommy Coyne, Paul McGrillen and Stevie Kirk.

After a strong result in the first leg, the squad travelled to the Faroe Islands, and after just 20 minutes, Kirk and Billy Davies had extended the Steelmen’s advantage to five before skipper Andreas Hansen pulled one back to deny Stevie Woods his clean sheet. Kirk scored his second of the match ten minutes later before Alex Burns rounded off a 4-1 win on the night.

A second tie between the two sides almost occurred in 2020 when HB were Motherwell’s potential opponents in the first qualifying round of the Europa League, Glentoran came out 1-0 winners of the tie with the Faroese side instead and progressed.

But the connection with the Faroese side doesn’t stop there.

André Olsen is HB’s current manager, a name Motherwell fans probably won’t recognise. But one connection between the Fir Park dugout and the one in the Gundadalur Stadium is Jens Berthel Askou. Askou managed HB through a successful spell, winning the league and league cup in 2020, and was named manager of the year for these achievements.

HB missed out on their 25th league title last season, finishing runners-up to winners Klaksvíkar Ítróttarfelag. HB hasn’t won the Faroese top-flight since 2020.

Now 13 league games into the 2026 season, HB have won four and drawn three of their matches as they sit sixth in the table.

Their top scorer is Storm Bugge Pettersen, who currently has six goals in all competitions. But someone who has two goals this season is former Motherwell player and fan-favourite Moses Ebiye, who moved to the Faroe Islands in April.

Former Motherwell goalkeeper Gunnar Nielson came out of retirement for one match in April this to take up a spot on the bench for HB, the side he came through the academy at. He didn’t feature.

HB play their home games at the Gundadalur Stadium, which is roughly a 45-minute journey from the main airport and has a capacity of 5000. The National Stadium in the Faroe Islands, Tórsvøllur, is also in Gundadalur.

HB are European regulars, having played in Europe, including this season, eight years in a row and 15 of the last 19 seasons. They have recorded notable wins over Red Bull Salzburg in 2010 and Maccabi Haifa in 2021 and drawn at home against the likes of Brøndby, Hajduk Split and HJK Helsinki in recent years, and a notable draw with Malmö in 2011.

The Faroese side have progressed through two European ties since 2014, a 6-3 aggregate win over Lincoln Red Imps from Gibraltar in 2014 and a 6-0 win over FK Budućnost Podgorica from Montenegro in 2021.

A reminder to all supporters that although we expect the first leg of our tie to be played at Fir Park, we encourage everyone to not book travel or accommodation until UEFA confirms match information.

All ticket and match information will be confirmed in due course.

We will face Havnar Bóltfelag of the Faroe Islands in the second round of the Conference League. 

The first leg will take place on Thursday 23 July, with the second leg taking place on Thursday 30 July.

As we have been drawn first, we expect the first leg to be at Fir Park. However, UEFA will confirm dates and venues of matches in the coming days.

We urge supporters not to book travel or accommodation until all match information is absolutely confirmed. These will be communicated as soon as we have all information confirmed.

As we edge closer to finding out who our European opponents will be, let’s take a look at how the draw works. 

We enter the second qualifying round for the UEFA Conference League, with the draw taking place on Wednesday 17 June in Nyon. Motherwell and Hibernian are in the draw.

Due to our club coefficient, we are unseeded in the draw. Hibernian are seeded. Seeding is not determined by position in the league table but is instead calculated using club coefficient ranking.

As the second-round draw takes place before the first qualifying round is completed, there is a chance we would have to wait until the first qualifying-round ties have taken place before we know our opponent. This means when our draw is completed, it could be ‘Motherwell v Team A or Team B.’

As we are unseeded, we will be drawn against a seeded opponent.

You can view seeding and potential opponents online by clicking here. Scroll down to the ‘CO-Q2: 2nd Qualifying Round section’. Teams with a ‘*’ next to them are seeded clubs of the first qualifying round that are assumed to progress to the second qualifying round.

All seeded teams in the second qualifying round draw are currently potential opponents. However, on the morning of Wednesday 17 June, UEFA will group all teams, and our potential opponents will be narrowed down to five. These will be communicated once they are known.

These groupings are loosely determined by geography to try and limit extensive travel, but there are no set guidelines on this.

The location of the first leg, as in will we play at home or away, will also be determined in the draw. The first team out of the hat will play at home in the first leg. Please note, however, this could be subject to change in the scenario of teams from the same area playing in European competition at the same time.

The draw for the third qualifying round takes place on Monday 20 July, prior to the first leg of the second qualifying round matches. This means that our opponents, should we progress to the next round of the Conference League, will be known. Ahead of the third qualifying round draw, UEFA will group our potential opponents like the second qualifying round draw.

In the draw, UEFA use the coefficient ranking of the highest club involved in every tie. In theory, should we be drawn against a team with a high coefficient ranking in the second qualifying round, and we progress, we will take their ranking. To be seeded in the third qualifying round, we would likely have to defeat a side with a very high club coefficient ranking so it is likely if we progressed to the third qualifying round, we would be unseeded once again.

All dates for all rounds and draws can be found on the UEFA Conference League website.

We recommend all supporters wait until official confirmation from UEFA on dates and venues before booking travel.

Ahead of the squad returning for day one of pre-season, we can confirm we will be travelling for a seven-day camp in Denmark.

The squad will depart on Monday 29 June and will return on Monday 6 July.

During their stay, the squad will undertake an intense seven-day programme in West Jutland. The squad will face newly crowned Danish champions AGF Aarhus in a friendly match on Sunday 5 July.

The match will take place at AGF Aarhus’ training ground and will be open to a limited number of spectators. Kick off is at 2pm local time.

We also want to confirm that our recruitment process to appoint a new manager is at an advanced stage. The club will not comment any further on this process.

Despite there being a managerial vacancy at the club, football staff have been working throughout the summer to ensure a comprehensive pre-season schedule is in place for the players returning.

Behind-closed-door pre-season fixtures have been arranged ahead of the commencement of our upcoming Conference League fixtures in late July and the William Hill Premiership in August, with these games taking place in the lead-up to these matches to ensure all players are fully prepared for the competitive action.

We hope to have a friendly match at Fir Park this summer once again, and once this is confirmed, all details will be published as soon as possible.

As the dust finally settles on the scintillating finale to the 2025/26 Scottish Women’s Premier League season, the women of steel are already preparing to kickstart their forthcoming Sky Sports Cup campaign.

Drawn in the reformatted and maiden league stage of the competition, Motherwell’s original Round One tie will be replaced by a competitive group stage format, with Iain Robinson’s side set to face an array of Premier League and Premier League 2 opposition.

Motherwell will face fellow top-flight side, Montrose before additional tests against SPWPL2 sides, Livingston, Gartcairn and Kilmarnock. Reflecting on the previous campaign, we gain an insight into our forthcoming opponents.

Montrose

Finishing level on points with the women of steel last campaign, the Gable Endies faced a tumultuous finale to their domestic campaign.

The Links Park side missed out on their maiden top-six finish on the final day of the regular season, as Partick Thistle netted a dramatic 94^th-minute winner to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat – firmly ending Montrose’s hopes of an historic season.

Despite heading into the post-split campaign, with a firm points advantage over the trailing three sides, Montrose finished their campaign in eighth, with Motherwell leading on goal-difference.

Aside from the league campaign, Montrose have had mixed success in the two cup competitions. A 7-0 thrashing from eventual SWPL champions Hearts promptly ended their Sky Sports Cup hopes before they could begin.

However, an excellent Scottish Cup run saw the side reach the Semi-Final stage after defeating both Aberdeen, Dundee United. A 2-0 defeat to Rangers at the National Stadium brought their campaign to a close.

Livingston

Scottish Power Women’s Premier League 2 side, Livingston maintained a largely uneventful 2025/26 campaign, with the club firmly out of the promotion playoff picture, but comfortably clear of the dreaded relegation playoffs.

Securing nine victories from 24-matches, the Lions finished seventh in the second-tier. The squad sealed a magnificent finale to the league campaign, thrashing St. Johnstone five-nil before hitting Stirling University for six in an exceptional 6-1 win.

Gartcairn

A fellow Scottish Power Women’s Premier League 2 side, Gartcairn’s domestic campaign mirrored the Lions in many respects. Despite securing a top-six place, the side were ultimately forced to compete in a league of their own, with the North Lanarkshire outfit finishing 24-points shy of the promotion playoffs.

Sealing eight victories across the season, Gartcairn scored 40, and conceded 51, with former Motherwell midfielders, Tara McGonigle and Georgie Robb both featuring for the team.

Kilmarnock

Despite a magnificent start that yielded much optimism of title success, the 2025/26 campaign ended in disaster for the Ayrshire side. Unbeaten across the campaign, securing 16 victories from 17, with one stalemate by matchday-17 – Kilmarnock built what seemed an irreversible 15-point advantage over title-rivals Spartans.

However, Spartans went unbeaten for the remainder of the season whilst Killie could only muster four-wins from the remaining 11 fixtures – sending the SPWPL2 trophy to Edinburgh, as Spartans snatched the title on the final day by two-points.

Despite the heart-breaking conclusion to their campaign, several players shone through, with forwards Abby Robinson and Cara Gray both being named amongst the top goal scorers in the division. The pair collectively netted 30-goals, and both finished three-goals shy of the league top-goalscorer.