New era for the Bears. For the first time, a professional Bears Women’s team will compete alongside our Men’s squad from 2025. ECB recently announced a multi-million pound plan to expand women’s cricket with the introduction of a three-tier system featuring eight fully professional sides. One of those will be based at Edgbaston. Bears Women, who will replace the current Central Sparks regional side, will compete in domestic 50-over and T20 competitions from next season.