Women鈥檚 pro soccer goes big-time in England. Why now?
| London
It was some three years ago when Rodney Cyrus decided to stop watching men鈥檚 soccer in favor of the women鈥檚 version in England instead.
He had grown cold to the 鈥渃ynical approach鈥� of the men鈥檚 game, awash with billions and churned into a product, he says. So when Manchester United, one of the biggest clubs in the world with rich American owners, finally introduced a women鈥檚 team 鈥� 140 years after the inception of its men鈥檚 team 鈥� he switched over.
鈥淚鈥檓 aware that they play second fiddle to the men鈥檚 game, perhaps much lower down the rung in terms of acceptance, history, and financial independence,鈥� he says. But 鈥渢here鈥檚 an honesty to the women鈥檚 game I like.鈥�
Why We Wrote This
Women鈥檚 professional sports have historically struggled to attain the popularity and financial success of men鈥檚 leagues. In England, society may be set to embrace women鈥檚 pro soccer.
Mr. Cyrus is part of a growing trend that may now be reaching a tipping point. Thanks to a societal shift in how the British view women鈥檚 sport, along with increasing investment of money and talent over the past decade, women鈥檚 soccer is set to expand beyond its previously niche following and enter into the public consciousness more fully.聽
More talent, more attention
A number of factors have helped push women鈥檚 soccer closer to the national forefront. The astronomic growth of men鈥檚 soccer has created a disconnect between players and fans, leading to many fans of the men鈥檚 game finding solace in a women鈥檚 game still very much rooted in its local communities.
Chris Paouros, a聽Tottenham Hotspur season ticket holder and a steering committee member and chair of the board at the Women鈥檚 Equality Party, underscores the 鈥減ositive experiences鈥� attracting disillusioned fans of men鈥檚 soccer alongside a 鈥渄ifferent audience with younger women and families.鈥�
鈥淔ans of the men鈥檚 game say they鈥檙e worried about the atmosphere and the aggression and how expensive it is. All of that doesn鈥檛 happen in women鈥檚 football,鈥� she says. 鈥淥ne of the things I love about women鈥檚 football is that we鈥檙e all there to support our team rather than [insult] the opposition.鈥�
England鈥檚 female domestic talent has also flourished in recent years, with the women鈥檚 national team becoming a top-flight international competitor. In the 2019 Women鈥檚 World Cup, the English national team finished fourth. And just before the tournament, Barclays Bank announced the聽largest commercial investment ever in women鈥檚 sport in the United Kingdom with its multimillion-pound, three-year deal聽sponsorship of the Women鈥檚 Super League (WSL), England鈥檚 elite tier.
An influx of top U.S. players has also helped skyrocket interest in the past year, with stars including Alex Morgan, Sam Mewis, and Rose Lavelle swapping the National Women鈥檚 Soccer League in the U.S. for the WSL. No one could have guessed that upon their arrival at Manchester United in the fall, Christen Press and Tobin Heath jerseys for three days outsold each of those of the men鈥檚 squad, another sign that English fans were captured by the bright stars of the women鈥檚 game just as much, if not more, than the men鈥檚 game.
The increased talent and fan attention has drawn interest from broadcasters as well. A landmark television deal will soon see women鈥檚 soccer aired on the BBC and Rupert Murdoch鈥檚 Sky cable platforms, paving the way for women鈥檚 soccer in England to broaden its reach. A recent research survey found聽that 34% of British adults say they are now fans of the women鈥檚 game, according to Barclays.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 underestimate how important it is,鈥� says Ms. Paouros, who works as a business consultant. She predicts free-to-air soccer on the BBC will smash viewing records set by men鈥檚 games broadcast on Sky and Amazon. 鈥淭here are some brilliant stories that we don鈥檛 know about because we don鈥檛 treat our female athletes the same way as we do with male athletes. This is the chance to change that.鈥�
And more eyeballs will mean an increased chance of corporate sponsors wanting a slice of the action, she says, estimating that the results of 鈥渢wo broadcasting rights cycles ... will allow teams to be self-sustaining.鈥�
Disparities remain
Glaring disparities remain off the pitch, however. The financial viability of teams remains tethered to their male counterparts, which can vary wildly; clubs like Manchester City, whose owners are backed by the wealth of the royal family of the United Arab Emirates, tower over others.
And big men鈥檚 clubs sometimes give their women鈥檚 team short shrift. When Liverpool built a new training ground for the men in 2020, replete with beach volleyball courts, the women鈥檚 side was excluded.
Waterlogged pitches remain all too prevalent in the WSL, resulting in multiple canceled women鈥檚 games in the winter, while players in the second division continue to hold down non-footballing full-time jobs while traveling long distances for games. 鈥淭hose players are seen as professional, but not treated as professional,鈥� says Man U fan Mr. Cyrus.
And women鈥檚 soccer,聽Mr. Cyrus says, continues to be an afterthought for soccer鈥檚 power brokers. When six of England鈥檚 biggest teams announced the ill-fated European Soccer League, only one sentence was devoted to the inclusion of a breakaway women鈥檚 version without further detail.
For all its challenges, women鈥檚 soccer attracts both disgruntled men鈥檚 fans and a new market of young women and families for its unique, family-friendly climate. Players remain connected to fans in a way that honors the game鈥檚 not-so-distant amateur past.
Though that may be changing with the influx of money. Fara Williams, a former England international who made her debut in 1999, retired in April, tethering the last remaining link between the amateur game and its evolved professional version. It鈥檚 been a decade since most players worked part-time jobs while playing for their respective clubs in semiprofessional leagues.
Now, there鈥檚 opportunity for female players to act out in ways the male players have gotten into trouble for. For example, as England entered its winter lockdown, some elite players were found to have traveled to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, seemingly for leisure, in violation of pandemic restrictions, upsetting fans and pundits alike. The controversy was 鈥渁n opening of a window鈥� into the world of newfound money in women鈥檚 soccer, says Mr. Cyrus.
Still, a down-to-earth atmosphere distinguishes women鈥檚 soccer as a potential competitor to the men鈥檚 game, and has enabled tightknit online communities on social media, says student Kristian Moe, a keen follower of the WSL in Bergen, Norway. Through Twitter, he鈥檚 found solace in a community of women鈥檚 soccer fans looking to get along with each other and share ideas online.
鈥淚 feel it鈥檚 a closer community than the men鈥檚 game. It鈥檚 not as big, so it鈥檚 more intimate, so it鈥檚 easy to discuss with people. There isn鈥檛 the same toxic environment.鈥�
