FIFA Release New Report On Development Of Women’s Football
FIFA have released their first ever comprehensive analysis of women’s football, having surveyed over 282 clubs across 30 leagues.
The report covered a variety of topics such as governance, finance and fan engagement in an effort to improve the development and professionalisation of elite women’s football worldwide.
The report found that clubs with a written strategy for women’s football had a 224% higher average revenue compared to clubs that did not, and leagues with both club licensing systems and financial controls having a higher portion of profitable clubs.
For leagues that had 80% or more of their participating clubs having a girls youth structure, their average national-team ranking was 13, much higher than those that did not whose average world ranking was 28.
In 73% of the leagues surveyed, the league champions in the 2018/19 season had the highest player wages and 50% of teams with access to the most facilities were league champions in the last five years.
72% of clubs surveyed are generating higher revenue from negotiating sponsorship contracts exclusively for their women’s team with sponsorship making up for over half of revenue for the most financially successful clubs.
Teams that also offered season tickets had a higher average attendance with 1 400 compared to those that didn’t with 1 000 as well as higher average revenue with USD$700 000 (AUD$904 000).
Speaking on the report, FIFA chief women’s football officer, Sarai Bareman, said: “This report provides key insights into the reality of the women’s game, as well as the many opportunities and challenges, on and off the pitch for players, clubs and leagues around the world.”
“It is paramount, as we look to the future of our game and take decisions that will impact generations to come, that we base these decisions on a clear understanding of where we are,” Bareman said.
“This means generating these insights into what is working well in the current context.
“This report is an important document to support the decision-making process of the stakeholders involved in the game.
“Whilst the progress already made and FIFA’s commitment to the women’s game is clear, more can still be done across football to maximise the exciting opportunities on the horizon and ensure a strong and sustainable ecosystem for the whole of women’s football,” she said.
FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, said: “Boosting the development and growth of women’s football – on and off the pitch – is a key commitment and top priority for FIFA.”
“As the interest continues to increase, we must focus on developing an in-depth understanding of the elite women’s football landscape,” Infantino said.
This document has been developed with the aim of supporting our women’s football stakeholders to better understand this landscape and to maximise its big potential.
“By working together, and embracing the challenges and exciting opportunities that lie ahead, I strongly believe we can bring women’s football to more people around the world and make it truly global,” he said.
