manchester united had a girls academy up to under 16's level even when the senior team did not play between 2005 and 2018. this was because of fa rules. the club's partner charity is the manchester united foundation. its work includes coaching girls at all ages across greater manchester. before the 2019–20 season, manchester united started a full-time u21 team. it played in the fa wsl academy league for the first time. charlotte healy is the manager. the club's development team had played the wsl academy cup final against arsenal the season before. they lost 5-0.