THE England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced Somerset will be one of the eight First Class Counties who have been successful in their bid to be awarded Tier 1 women’s team status from 2025.

As a further outcome of the Tier 1 invitation to tender process, the ECB has also announced the selection of two additional First Class Counties to expand Tier 1 from eight to ten teams by 2027, and an intent to grow to 12 teams by the 2029 season.

The eight selected counties to compete in Tier 1 of the evolved women’s professional domestic structure from 2025 are: Durham, Essex, Hampshire, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire, Somerset, Surry, Warwickshire. Joining them, by 2027, will be Glamorgan and Yorkshire, who have been named as the first two Tier 1 expansion teams.

This announcement means that the Western Storm Women’s team will be based at the Cooper Associates County Ground in Taunton as from 2025.

The ECB has also set the ambition to expand Tier 1 to 12 teams by 2029, given the rapid growth of the women’s game and the level of passion and desire for the growth of women’s professional cricket demonstrated across the FCC network during this tender process.