Several weeks ago, Wembley stadium hosted yet another memorable date in its long special history. This time around it concerned women’s football.<\/p>\n
The FA Cup final remains a standout date on the calendar and the match against Chelsea and Arsenal was no different. Except, this day meant more than just lifting a trophy.<\/p>\n
A century ago, the Football Association banned women from playing the sport, ultimately setting back women\u2019s football generations. Their reasoning was that the sport was \u201cquite unsuitable for females\u201d, despite tens of thousands of fans attending matches. Half a decade later, the FA lifted the ban.<\/p>\n
To reconcile with its past, the FA stood tall against its history by turning its predecessors\u2019 crime into a landmark moment by playing the final on the\u00a0anniversary.<\/p>\n
Match-goers injected brightness and jubilation into the gloomy afternoon affected by omicron fears. Chelsea manager Emma Hayes<\/a> paid tribute to the \u2018sacrifices\u2019 of every woman who made the occasion possible.<\/p>\n The moment represented freedom, equality, legitimacy and acceptance. Whilst times have changed, there is still a long road ahead. Women’s football reforms are inevitable, but they are needed to build upon altering attitudes and the evolution of the sport.<\/p>\n One of the most drastic changes women’s football has experienced in the last ten years is the shift in national attitudes to the game.<\/p>\n In March 2021, the FA negotiated a record-breaking<\/a> \u00a38 million per year TV deal with Sky and the BBC sharing the rights. Some of the money will be reserved for infrastructure investments, such as supporting refereeing development, and merit-based circumstances. The rest is split 75% for the Women Super League and 25% for the Championship.<\/p>\n UEFA also saw success with streaming giants DAZN and YouTube<\/a> acquiring rights to show all 61 women Champions League matches across four seasons. This is the first year every match has been broadcasted. Chris Slegg, a sports journalist and commentator for YouTube\u2019s coverage, labelled it as a \u201cseismic shift\u201d.<\/p>\n However, Deborah Dilworth, the lead for the women\u2019s game at the Football Supporters Association (FSA), raised similar concerns about broadcasting that is regularly discussed in men\u2019s football.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will aid the women’s game in many ways – injection of money and visibility,\u201d she told Last Word On Football<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever there are some downsides. What happens to the importance of in-stadia fans? What happens to their experience? Money is weighted towards clubs who already have more money and matches get moved for TV at short notice.\u201d<\/p>\n These issues are likely to be repeated as women\u2019s football continues to grow. One such event that will contribute to this is the European Championships set to take place this summer in England.<\/p>\n Chris Slegg said this tournament \u201cprobably will be a major international tournament given equal respect to the men\u2019s tournament here in England.<\/p>\n “It still won\u2019t be on par with the national hype, but I still think it will be pretty close to having a men\u2019s tournament.\u201d<\/p>\n The sports journalist of 20 years also feels that this continued acceptance and growth of women\u2019s football has also impacted men when it comes to family life and the next generations attitudes.<\/p>\n \u201cMy generation of men will take just as much pride in taking their daughter to a football lesson or taking their daughter to a football match. Men and women don\u2019t have to feel this isn\u2019t a pursuit for your daughter. Everyone is just welcome to enjoy it.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is led by the media saying \u2018look, this is just football. It is a game. It doesn\u2019t matter if women are playing it.’<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the first season where we have had the BBC showing games regularly on the terrestrial channels and Sky showing it every week. Just how powerful that is, that young boys and girls will watch a football match and our daughters and sons will not question \u2018oh, why is it women playing\u2019. It is just football.’\u201d<\/p>\n Financial Redistribution<\/strong><\/p>\n Lodged inside the Fan-Led Review of Football Governance<\/a> are recommendations on how the men\u2019s economic system should be transformed. The idea is to implement greater financial redistribution, therefore creating greater equality and balanced resources for all.<\/p>\n While the Premier League engaged in a fierce and inaccurate tug-of-war<\/a>, their counterparts stayed away from the limelight despite suffering from similar issues on a damning scale.<\/p>\n \u201cSome teams don\u2019t even get enough money for their own travel,\u201d Kerrie Evans, a representative of Chelsea Women Supporters Group said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe wealth needs to be spread a bit more, so people don\u2019t spend money out of their own pocket. Clubs are technically losing money for playing an FA Cup game. The prize money needs to be different.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris Slegg echoed the same concerns.<\/p>\n \u201cLewis is leading the campaign to ask the FA to redistribute prize money. Winning the men\u2019s FA Vase means you will get \u00a35,000 more for winning that competition (\u00a330,000) than you would get for winning the women\u2019s FA Cup (\u00a325,000).<\/p>\n \u201cThere are a lot of questions being asked of the FA. That is an issue they are going to need to look at pretty soon. It doesn\u2019t sit right at all.\u201d<\/p>\n One women’s football reform cannot be a women\u2019s club relying on their men\u2019s club to provide financial resources.<\/p>\n Evans said: \u201cSome teams are linked to the men\u2019s team, but you have Durham who is not linked with a men\u2019s team. You cannot really put something saying men\u2019s need to support the women\u2019s team because that will affect Durham.\u201d<\/p>\n Tracey Crouch, the chair of the government review<\/a>, did not dedicate a huge amount of time recommending solutions to these problems in women\u2019s football. She instead wants a review devoted to women’s football reforms.<\/p>\n When this work will get started, however, is yet to be known. \u201cWe are working hard behind the scenes to prepare for the separate\u00a0review into women’s football and welcome it,\u201d Dilworth said.<\/p>\n Supporting Injured Players<\/strong><\/p>\n In men\u2019s football, when a player goes down injured, concerns will immediately turn to the severity of the injury. But worries over funding never enter people\u2019s minds. Women’s football does not have this luxury.<\/p>\n \u201cEven within the Championship, certainly in the last couple of years, a player can get a very serious injury and be basically left on their own to fund that injury,\u201d Slegg explains.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are not going to get support from their clubs to help them get the treatment they need. To think you can have players, at that level, of the women\u2019s game \u2013 the top 22 clubs in England \u2013 and you will get injured, and you will have no support to help you recover.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not sure how far down the men\u2019s pyramid you will have to go to be left in that position. There will be, quite rightly talented young boys at top clubs, getting better support who are not yet grown, professionals.<\/p>\n “You would get better care and attention than the very best women players at the very top clubs. The duty of care to injured players needs to be addressed very soon.\u201d<\/p>\n The Power of the FA Cup<\/strong><\/p>\n Whenever the FA Cup arrives on people\u2019s doorsteps, talk of its magic is never too far behind.<\/p>\n While men\u2019s football grapples with the annual challenges of keeping the FA Cup relevant, the significance of the tournament lives on in the women\u2019s sport. Slegg believes it is the only chance for some teams to receive national recognition.<\/p>\n This particularly applies to fourth-tier sides Doncaster Rovers Belles LFC and Southampton Women. Rovers are third on the all-time winner’s list for their six trophies during the 1980s and 1990s, whilst Southampton is second for their eight FA Cups between 1970-1971 and 1980-1981. “It is through the FA Cup those clubs are going to get talked about,” Slegg said.<\/p>\n However, both teams are out of this year’s edition. Instead, Lincoln City, Newcastle United, Billericay Town, and Exeter City, have the opportunity to take the spotlight as the remaining fourth-tier teams.<\/p>\n One key difference is, where men\u2019s football is fixated with discussing magic, women\u2019s football is immersed in the power of the FA Cup.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is almost more powerful than the WSL,\u201d Slegg said. \u201cYour audiences understand cup football in a way they might not understand the league.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I am explaining to my children what this cup match means at the end of the day: somebody at the end of the Wembley final will pick up a cup, they have won that competition.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the league, you rarely get a chance to say at the end of this game it is going to mean everything. On the final day, you might be able to say that. There might be a day three or four games before the end of the season, if they win this, and the other team loses, then they are going to win it.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is more complex and clunky to explain to very young kids league football than cup football. Having a national cup competition is a really important thing. Cup football is a really powerful way to tap into really young audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n Cup football is now playing a fundamental role in growing women\u2019s football. Attracting young audiences is critical for the FA to reach its attendance targets<\/a>.<\/p>\n By 2024, the FA want 6,000 fans and 1,000 fans to be attending WSL and Championship matches per week, respectively. They also hope to be selling-out Wembley by the same time.<\/p>\n Optimism these goals can be reached is reinforced by almost 41,000 fans heading to Wembley for the FA Cup final, despite COVID fears and harsh winter weather.<\/p>\nChanging Attitudes<\/strong><\/h3>\n
England\u2019s Lionesses Could Help to Inspire Next Generation<\/h3>\n
Fans Key to Women\u2019s Football Reforms and Growth<\/h3>\n