According to the Sun on August 23, Tottenham Hotspur plans to build a women's football academy in Gushulin, which has caused controversy.

Tottenham Hotspur FC plans to convert part of the ancient woods in Whiteweb Park in Enfield district in north London into a sports facility, a move that has sparked strong protests from local residents and environmentalists.

Whiteweb Park enthusiasts oppose Tottenham’s project, which aims to build a new women’s football academy, which includes 11 football fields and a clubhouse. Local residents not only want to protect the "beautiful" green space, but also point out that Tottenham already has more than 15 stadiums in the centre of Hotsper Road across the road. Tottenham said the development will "improve local access to the natural environment and habitat and provide new facilities for tourists, community groups and sports clubs." Enfield Council approved planning permission for the construction project in February, and the city also gave final approval last month.

Caroline Day, who lives in an area near the park, expressed her anger in an interview with the Metro. "I'm willing to go to Whiteweb Park because it's a very beautiful space," she said. But she was worried that Tottenham "using the growing interest in women's football as an excuse to destroy the park."

Tottenham will pay £2 million to rent 53 hectares of land on the park for 25 years to build a light stadium on the ancient woods. The park was purchased by Middlesex Council in 1931 and Tottenham hoped to develop a public golf course that was previously. The golf course was closed in 2021 because it has been losing money. Protesters say the project will cause 16 hectares of green space to disappear, requiring 207 adult trees to be cut down, and some animal species found only locally in London will become extinct. Angry local residents now call Tottenham "vurp capitalists" because they want to build on the land with ancient trees and rare wildlife.

After Enfield Council handed over the lease to Tottenham, local residents, including the Whiteweb Park Guardians Activity, filed a lawsuit in the High Court challenging what they believed was an illegal closure of public places. Activists believe that despite Tottenham's claim that the new development will benefit the community, it will actually only destroy their ancient woods. Some Tottenham fans even disqualified their membership because they opposed the program.

A person who donated to the crowdfunding event said: "Enfield Council should be ashamed, and so do Tottenham, I will cancel my membership." Local resident Feth said: "My parents are from Enfield and they often talk about Whiteweb Park. I donate in their name. My husband is a Tottenham fan and he will not support the team anymore."

Caroline added: "We strive to embody the spirit of this sentence in our struggle with them. Many of our supporters are Tottenham fans, who feel they have been disappointed by the clubs they have put in a lot of energy to support."

protesters want to raise funds and successfully revoke the plan through legal means. The Whiteweb Park Guardians described the situation as “destructive.” When the city approved the development last month, it said that while the proposal represents “inappropriate development on the green belt, it has proven to be a very special situation.”

Protesters hope to raise £30,000 to urgently review the decision of Enfield Parliament. By press time, more than £23,000 has been raised and 14 days left to meet the fundraising target.

After the city approved the development, Enfield Council leader Ekin Ebbier said: "We welcome the news that the mayor of London decided not to stop the plan submitted by Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. This step will move the exciting vision of Whiteweb Park forward. Plans include improved access to the natural environment, improved park facilities such as planting more trees and providing good facilities such as cafes. This also paves the way for the creation of new community and sports facilities, including the best-in-class football academy for women and girls, inspiring generations to come."

Tottenham plans to set up the new academy next to the existing men's training facilities so that approximately 11,000 square meters of facilities can be shared, reducing new construction work and carbon emissions. The new program will also include a community participation program for local football training around 36,700 hours a year, as well as free transportation services for schools to participate in community training.