Plymouth Argyle have told the vast majority of their women’s first-team players their contracts will not be renewed this summer, the Guardian has learned, just weeks after they narrowly missed out on promotion to Women’s Super League 2.

In an email sent to almost all of the senior squad, Plymouth’s chief executive, Paul Berne, explained that the “difficult decision” to let the players go reflected “the direction of the squad for next season” and went on to thank them and offer them job references.

According to multiple sources, the club’s decision to let so many players go is primarily a financial one, coming amid plans to significantly reduce the women’s team’s playing budget in the summer. Plymouth were contacted for a comment in response on Sunday morning.

The news follows the resignation of the team’s head coach, Marie Hourihan, on 28 May, and it is believed that the club’s budget cuts were a contributing factor towards her decision to resign. The coach was understood to be popular with the players and the supporters.

Berne’s email said: “Hi all. Following our end-of-season review and planning for 2026-27, we wanted to let you know that we won’t be renewing contracts for the players included in this message.”

The email went on to say the decision was “not a lack of appreciation for the effort, commitment and professionalism you’ve shown” and expressed the club’s “gratitude for the time you’ve given Argyle”, before offering support to find new opportunities and wishing the players “all the very best moving forward”.

In a joint statement released on Sunday evening, Plymouth’s players said: “Following the decision from the board to significantly reduce the team’s budget, and the understandable resignation of our manager, nearly all players have been informed via an email from the club that they will be released at the end of our contracts next month.

“The decision was communicated through a cold, impersonal email, providing us with no opportunity for open, honest or meaningful dialogue and preventing us from gaining clarity on the situation. We feel the staff and players who have given everything for the badge this season should have been treated with greater care, respect and empathy.”

In a statement on 28 May, the former Brighton, Chelsea and Manchester City goalkeeper Hourihan said “thank you to the senior leadership of Plymouth Argyle for this opportunity” to coach the team throughout the 2025-26 season but also added: “Now is the right time for me to consolidate and consider what is next for me. This has not been a decision I have taken lightly.”

Plymouth finished second in the Southern section of the FA Women’s National League this term, missing out on automatic promotion by just one point, behind the champions Watford, who were promoted. Hourihan oversaw an impressive 16 wins in 22 league fixtures, to finish above clubs including Bournemouth and the former WSL2 sides Oxford United and Lewes in the table.

Finishing second saw Plymouth contest 4 May’s playoff decider against the Northern division runners-up, Wolverhampton Wanderers, who went on to secure a slender 1-0 win over Argyle in Burton, in a game in which Plymouth created several fine chances before hitting the woodwork late on.

The vast majority of the squad were understood to be on one-year contracts – as is commonplace across the lower leagues in the women’s game – but it was a shock for the players to learn that they were being let go this summer. Another source close to the squad described the news as “heartbreaking” and said there was now relatively little time to find a new team.