London City Lionesses represent the Women's Super League's great unknown. A modest club with flashy budgets and ambitions far beyond reasonable expectation, having only been promoted to the top flight 12 months ago. Billionaire owner Michele Kang seeks Champions League football and has enlisted European megastars like Alexia Putellas and Mary Earps to aid the mission.

However, the task is daunting; it has been 12 years since a side outside the established top three—Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City, and Man Utd—finished inside the top spots. Since the WSL's inception, only four clubs have ever won the title. Kang is trying to disrupt the established order, similar to when Man City entered women's football a decade and a half ago.

Investment is flowing into the training ground, youth setup, and commercial arms, not just star players. London City do not have the luxury of drawing from a men's club supporter pool, requiring creative enticement for big crowds. Initially, investment came directly from Kang's pocket, but she is hiring top commercial brains to increase revenues and make the model sustainable.

The hope is that new signings drive shirt sales and sponsorship opportunities. The success of this model rests largely on London City's performance this season and beyond, as Chelsea have been the biggest spenders, winning six of the last seven titles. The scale of summer spending will make for interesting reading when accounts are revealed.