FOREWORD
I RMAN
ECA CHA
It is a great pleasure to introduce the latest report in the ECA Future of Fandom series, ‘Growing the Women’s Game’. At ECA, our mission is to develop women’s and men’s European club football, working in partnership with all stakeholders, in the interests of all. We aspire to make a positive difference to the clubs and communities we support every day. In that context, the development of the women’s game is a particular and permanent priority for ECA. Our vision for the further professionalisation of the women’s game was first set out in our ‘Be a Changemaker’ strategy in 2021, which continues to guide our commitments and efforts in this area.
Our recent governance reforms mean European clubs can now qualify for full ECA membership through the performance of their women’s team; and for the first time, women’s clubs have two dedicated seats on our Executive Board. However, we are especially proud that ECA is a leading centre of excellence for research and insights into women’s football. Our ground-breaking research positively guides women’s and men’s club decisions, whether in the medical and high-performance space, or – as is the case with this report – in understanding the evolving needs of our fans.
Central to the recent success of the women’s game has been the deep, positive and collaborative engagement with fans; and this will remain a foundation for growth of the women’s game in the future – as our report explains. We hope you find the ‘ECA Future of Fandom – Growing the Women’s Game’ report both thought-provoking and insightful, and we thank all those who have contributed to this important publication. n
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INTRODUCTION
AL L
WOMEN ’S FOOTB
HEAD OF
Following the resounding success of ECA’s original report on global football fandom, first published in 2020, we identified an undeniable demand to dive deeper into fan behaviours in the women’s game – and this is a crucial next step into understanding the tremendous growth of women’s football globally. The passionate and ever-growing women’s football fanbase is vital to the game’s success, and whilst records in attendance and viewership continue to be smashed season upon season, the game still represents a world of untapped potential. Prioritising the access and promotion of women’s football increases visibility and grows audiences and sponsorship opportunities. But it will take an industry-wide commitment to ensure the game continues on this remarkable upward trajectory.
This report, the latest in our series dedicated to exploring fandom, is an insight into the thoughts, feelings and expectations of fans – giving you, the clubs, valuable perspective on how you can potentially transform their experiences. It’s a first step to tackling the big questions everyone wants answers to – how do you get fans through the gates every week and not just for the blockbuster fixtures held in big stadiums? Our study has also uncovered a fascinating glimpse into some developing markets for women’s football including Belgium, Mexico, and Scotland – looking at the unique reasons why and ways in which fans there are engaging with their clubs. As audiences for the women’s game continue to grow, new commercial opportunities in women’s football are opening up. Through our Be a Changemaker strategy, we made a commitment
to advancing the game’s economic development, and these findings on fans are vital to informing decisions about how we do that together. Throughout the report you will also hear from leading sponsors who are benefiting from their links with clubs and competitions and get their thoughts on how best to maximise revenue streams. On behalf of ECA, thank you to all of the fans and experts globally who have shared their valuable insights with us for what we hope will be the first of many detailed studies exploring the rapidly evolving fandom of the women’s game. n
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GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME
27
18
8
5 6 REPORT STRUCTURE METHODOLOGY
CHAPTER 3: The routes to further growth Identifying the opportunities to drive even more
CHAPTER 2: Everyone is welcome Attracting a broad audience for women’s football across genders, ages and countries
CHAPTER 1: The rise of women’s football Charting the growing interest in, and engagement with, the women’s game
growth for the women’s game
4
35
55
46
CHAPTER 4: How to help fans overcome challenges
66
ACCESSIBILITY: Tackling practical barriers to attendance
ENGAGEMENT: Building an emotional connection between fans and women’s football
CONCLUSION
Solutions to encouraging more regular engagement with the women’s game
GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME
This report draws upon up-to-date information to put together a profile of the people who are and why, to highlight opportunities clubs have to engage with them more deeply, and to reach markets that currently are not being catered to specifically. currently following the women’s game Our first report, published in 2020, focused on building the framework for our research programme – devised to understand the different types of fans that exist today, catering for their individual motives and needs.
The very positive feedback from clubs and other industry stakeholders encouraged us to do more. Starting in the 2021/22 season, we embarked on a “always on” research programme, enabling us to release fresh insights on various existing and arising trends as well as identifying and highlighting opportunities for football clubs on a more regular basis. The selection of themes of our research series are developed and overseen by the ECA Research Task Force – made up of representatives from ECA Member Clubs – and the valuable feedback from clubs to ensure we deliver tangible and highly relevant content, helping you to promote and market your offerings, develop strategy for the future, and understand the fan base – and potential fan base – more deeply. n
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GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME
The initial data was collected through our Future of Fandom tracker, an ‘always on’ online survey of football followers, which ran each month during the 2021/22 season and was available for participants to complete in their own time. This was conducted by MTM Sport, an independent research and strategy consultancy.
The interviewees came from the following markets (sample size): Core markets:
Fieldwork for core markets was conducted between May and July 2022, and in additional markets in November 2022. Additional data has also been taken from previous ECA studies conducted in early 2022. In these instances, data is only available for core markets listed. Quotas were set within markets on age, gender, and region to ensure that the sample was reflective of the general football following population. Respondents who said they are not interested in football were not included in the sample. This report refers to “statistical significance”; that means a significant difference between two research results which is large enough that it is highly likely it didn’t arise by chance. Where there is a significant difference between two groups of respondents, it means that a real difference is likely to exist between these groups.
US (912), China (905), UK (321), Italy (318), France (305), Germany (305), Spain (311), Netherlands (303) Additional markets:
6
Mexico (310), Sweden (322), Belgium (304), Scotland (304), Japan (309). Additional markets were selected based on recent domestic developments in women’s football – such as changes to their domestic structure or significant investment within the game – which has heightened focus on women’s football.
We then interviewed a representative sample of football followers aged 16+ across eight core markets plus five additional markets, with this more detailed information helping us to explore global behaviours and attitudes to women’s football.
GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME
Based on interest in football from the following answer scale FOOTBALL INTEREST DEFINITIONS
Throughout this report, we use the terms ‘football follower’ and ‘football fan’. These are not strictly interchangeable terms. In the research, we asked respondents to indicate the extent of their engagement with women’s professional football – from intense fandom that consumed a large proportion of their life, through a decreasing scale: a fan who considered themselves up to date but would not follow it every day; someone who followed it relatively closely without choosing the words ‘big fan’ to describe themselves; a follower in passing, who had interest in occasional events such as international tournaments; someone who had no interest in following it at all; and someone who hated the sport altogether. Thus “fans” in this research would fall into the top two categories, with “followers” falling into the top four. n
Football fans
I’M A BIG FAN I like to keep up to date but don’t follow it everyday
I FOLLOW RELATIVELY CLOSELY but I
I’M A HUGE FAN
I FOLLOW IN PASSING such as international sports
I HAVE NO INTEREST in following this sport at all
I HATE this sport
following it is a big part of my life
7
wouldn’t say I’m a big fan
Football followers
1
ncing a
ball is experie eriod of grow
Women’s foot remarkable p popularity. Th this growth is record-break
th and
ows that
is research sh proved not o nly by
endances,
ing match att line searches mentions ind ft in attitudes
, and
but also by on
icating a
social media
toward
sustained shi
the sport.
THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
BOOM IN FANS AND SPONSORS I t is a great time for women’s football – for the clubs, the players and of course the fans. Recent years have seen
A MAJORITY OF FOOTBALL FOLLOWERS GLOBALLY ARE INTERESTED IN THE WOMEN’S GAME, REGARDLESS OF ITS STATE OF DEVELOPMENT LOCALLY Very interested Fairly interested Neither / Don’t know Fairly uninterested Not at all interested
significant growth for the women’s game. Interest amongst football followers typically peaks around the time of major events such as the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but this research has shown that even outside of major women’s football events, the overall trend of interest continues upwards. In the last few years we have seen record-breaking match attendances, online information searches and social media mentions, as well as fans predicting their interest will grow, all of which point to a lasting change in attitudes towards the game. In addition, we have seen increased commercial interest and sponsorship, for example, recent high- profile campaigns by companies such as Just Eat Takeaway.com, EA SPORTS and PepsiCo. Despite the women’s game being at different stages of development across markets, there is consistently a strong audience for women’s football. Across all markets we surveyed (except for Japan), a majority of those who follow football are interested in the women’s game; less than one in four overall say they are not interested.
76% 76% 60% 57% 54% 54% 53% 53% 52% 51% 51% 50% 46% 59%
11%
23% 25% 23% 22% 22% 20% 20% 20% 14% 16%
26%
35%
45%
35%
36% 34%
31%
31%
31%
32%
31% 33%
32%
9
37%
34%
41%
17%
31%
20%
19%
18%
20%
19%
17%
25% 22%
20%
19%
18%
13%
24%
17%
15% 13%
10%
13%
16%
6% 13%
11%
16%
12%
10% 12%
6% 17%
15%
14% 14% 14% 17% 13%
13%
7%
5% 10% 11% 11%
1%
CHI
USA
NED
MEX
FRA
UK
GER
SPA
BEL
SWE
ITA
SCO
JAP
NET
Source: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QY2 – How much do you follow women’s professional football? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (5,400), US (912); China (905); Netherlands (303); Mexico (310); Germany (305); France (305); Spain (311); Belgium (304); Sweden (322); UK (321); Italy (318); Scotland (304); Japan (309)
THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
GENDER EQUALITY DRIVES INTEREST... I t may be that some of this new interest in the women’s game is driven by societal changes around gender ...AS DO QUALITY AND POPULARITY...
Fans are, naturally, drawn by the merits of the game itself. The women’s game is high quality, with 50% of its followers saying that is why they are interested. Specifically, they say the game is entertaining, exciting, and offers something different to the men’s game. The next key driver of interest was ‘increased popularity’, cited by 47% of followers: the very fact that women’s football is becoming more popular and enjoying increasing hype makes it something fans want to feel part of. Specifically, followers said that the women’s game is inspirational and that it gives them another opportunity to watch football.
equality. The research shows that 54% of football followers say they are interested in women’s football because they want to support gender equality – this is more than any other reason. Specifically, they want to support the players, they feel like they should support the women’s game and they are interested because of the strong role models in the game. This is similar to earlier academic research findings; 1 it is significant that this is still being reported more than seven years later.
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1 Dunn, Carrie, ‘Football and the Women’s World Cup’ (Palgrave Pivot, 2015) 2012 Olympic Final: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetorch/2012/08/10/158502155/womens-olympic-soccer- final-u-s-vs-japan-for-gold 2015 WC Final: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_FIFA_Women%27s_World_Cup_final#/media/File:Off_to_a_ good_start_(19781364556)_(2).jpg Barca v Real: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/28508/12578437/barcelona-5-2-real-madrid-nou- camp-breaks-womens-football-attendance-record#:~:text=Barcelona%20broke%20the%20women’s%20 attendance,an%208%2D3%20aggregate%20win. https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/the-5-biggest-attendances-in-womens-football
THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
ATTENDANCES AT WOMEN’S MATCHES HAS INCREASED CONSIDERABLY, WITH SEVERAL RECORD-BREAKING ATTENDANCES IN THE PAST DECADE
...AND INTEREST DRIVES ATTENDANCE This increased interest and engagement isn’t confined to the online world. Recent years have seen record-breaking attendance figures for women’s football globally 2 . While last season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF became the largest ever official attendance at a professional women’s match, with 91,533 present, this is by no means an anomaly. Prior to this season (2021/22), six of the seven highest-ever official attendances for women’s football matches had come in the last decade, highlighting the increasing interest in match attendance and willingness to engage directly with the women’s game as well as the increased backing from clubs and governing bodies, giving women’s matches stadia in which these capacity attendances can be achieved.
Record attendance figures for women’s football matches (prior to 2022/23)
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP FINAL USA VS. CHINA
1999
90,185
LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC FOOTBALL FINAL USA VS. JAPAN
2012
80,203
2015
53,351
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP FINAL USA VS. JAPAN
11
2019
60,739
INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY ENGLAND VS. GERMANY
2019
57,900
LIGA F CLUB ATLÉTICO DE MADRID VS. FC BARCELONA
2019
77,768
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP FINAL USA VS. NETHERLANDS
UEFA WOMEN’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FC BARCELONA VS. REAL MADRID CF
2022
91,553
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
2 1999 WC Final: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/jun/20/womens-world-cup-game-changing-moments-no4-brandi-chastain-1999 Source: 1999 WC Final: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/jun/20/womens-world-cup-game-changing-moments-no4-brandi-chastain-1999
2012 Olympic Final: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetorch/2012/08/10/158502155/womens-olympic-soccer-final-u-s-vs-japan-for-gold 2015 WC Final: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_FIFA_Women%27s_World_Cup_final#/media/File:Off_to_a_good_start_(19781364556)_(2).jpg Barca v Real: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/28508/12578437/barcelona-5-2-real-madrid-nou-camp-breaks-womens-football-attendance-record#:~:text=Barcelona%20broke%20the%20women’s%20attendance,an%20 8%2D3%20aggregate%20win.https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/the-5-biggest-attendances-in-womens-football
THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
IN THE PAST 18 MONTHS IN PARTICULAR, MATCH ATTENDANCES IN THE WOMEN’S GAME HAVE BEEN AMONGST THE BIGGEST IN FOOTBALL Peak audiences for football (selected) 2022 to date
Note: attendances show represent peak audiences for each competition in each season. Additional attendances included for UEFA Women’s Champions League to highlight consistent high attendance levels. The women’s game – given the platform and the venue – now also has the power to capture the imagination of fans in a similar way to the men’s game. n women’s football matches. This is in contrast to earlier years where peaks were sporadic and only associated with the very biggest events, such as the FIFA Women’s World Cup final. attendances at women’s football matches, in particular in the UEFA Women’s Champions League and UEFA Women’s EURO, but also in domestic competitions. Indeed, during the 2022 calendar year, the three highest attendances in European football were at Not only are attendances for women’s football increasing, but big match attendance is now regularly rivalling levels seen in the men’s game. Over the course of the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 seasons there have been multiple eye-catching
Women’s matches
Men’s matches
91,648
120K
95,745
91,553
60,063
75,584
87,192
100K
81,365
12
75,546
72,262
80K
47,637
60K
40K
20K
0K
APR22 MAY22 JUN22 JUL22 AUG22 SEP22 OCT22 NOV22 DEC22 JAN23 FEB23 MAR23 APR23 MAY23 JUN23
THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
SEARCH AND SOCIAL ARE SOARING This increasing interest in women’s football is illustrated by the high numbers of people searching for information online. Google search data shows a sizable increase in football fans looking for information on the women’s game globally. Search volumes seen in the past five years dwarf those seen at any other time since the year 2000. This upward trend is highlighted by the growth in the 2020s of searches for specific women’s leagues. n VOLUME OF SEARCHES FOR WOMEN’S COMPETITIONS *
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
13
2000’S
2010’S
2020’S
2010’S
2020’S
Notes: Figures show an index of search volume for “women’s football” or equivalent term in other languages. A value of 100 represents the all time peak of searches for women’s football. In that language. A value of 50 means that the term is half as popular. Orange lines show overall data trend. Source: Google trends search data *Volume of Google searches for each competition, indexed to peak interest
2010’S
2020’S
2010’S
2020’S
A s well as online searches, social media conversations around the women’s game are also increasing, again driven by events. The UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 and the UEFA Women’s Champions League 2022/23 drove thousands of social media users to discuss the game and create conversations celebrating the growing visibility and success of the women’s teams. INCREASING COMMERCIAL INTEREST Increased audience attention is driving commercial interest in partnership and sponsorship deals. Women’s football has recently captured the attention of high-profile corporate sponsors, as demonstrated by Barclays doubling their existing investment in English women’s football and extending their previous commitment to also become the headline sponsor of the FA Women’s Championship, and Google Pixel signing a four-year deal to become the Frauen Bundesliga’s naming rights partner. Elsewhere, recent multi- year sponsorships of UEFA’s women’s football from the likes of PepsiCo, Just Eat Takeaway.com and EA SPORTS lend further credibility to the women’s game, and in the latter case brings women’s football to a new audience in the world of video games. THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
For the first time, many of these investments (including those from Barclays and Google Pixel) are being made independently of men’s teams or organisations. Corporations are increasingly recognising that not only does women’s football attract sizable audiences, but it also reaches beyond the typical men’s football audience to those with no previous relationship to the sport. Women’s football therefore offers incremental reach and untapped
commercial opportunity. STILL MORE TO COME
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Despite the sizable increases we’ve seen in recent years in the level of interest and engagement with women’s football through various channels, many fans still expect their interest to increase. Across markets surveyed, a sizable minority of all football followers expect their interest in women’s football to grow, with fewer fans expecting their interest to wane in the wake of major events within the women’s game. Fans in China (34%), the United States (33%) and Spain (24%), in particular, feel they are likely to follow the women’s game more closely than they have in the past. n
GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
AME
THE WO MEN’S G
LVED IN
BE INVO
TIME TO
B E T T E R
NEVER A
Recent years have seen significant growth for the women’s game. Increased hype around the game, improved perceptions of quality and support for the equality that the game represents has resulted in high levels of interest amongst football followers across the globe. This in turn has delivered record breaking attendances, online information searches and social media mentions. With fans predicting that their interest will continue to grow, the women’s game is likely to go from strength to strength.
CLUB VOICE
ELISABETTA BAVAGNOLI, HEAD OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL (AS ROMA)
“AS Roma is a club where everyone understands that the women’s team should look to become an example not only in Italy but also in Europe. The run in the Women’s Champions League last season is a clear sign of the direction we’re heading in. At AS Roma we all place great emphasis on developing the women’s game. We know how important it is and we want to lead the way. We’re restructuring our resources to make it possible to work in unison with the various departments at the club to try to boost our players’ visibility and development, both by taking inspiration from the
15
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GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
men’s game and by making choices that can help us stand out in an inflated world where the uniqueness of our sport can be successful. Even just a few months ago, no one would have imagined seeing a crowd of almost 40,000 (39,454) at the Stadio Olimpico for a Women’s Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona – the highest attendance ever for a professional women’s match in Italy. In 2018, the first season of our women’s team, we had barely 300 fans in the stands. Last season our stadium, the Tre Fontane, had the highest attendance in Serie A, both during the regular season and in the Scudetto play-offs, when we had an average crowd of 2,000 getting behind us. The four biggest attendances in Serie A were all played at our home ground. We have a group of hardcore fans who have been there since our very first match, and the rest
are mainly families and Roma fans who watch the men’s team too. This sport has the power to appeal to millions of people and the potential to become a resource for Italian football as a whole in future. Thanks to the hard work of every department at Roma and to our fans too, Roma-Barcelona showed us how a club like ours can improve the visibility of women’s football. During that match I think we had the chance to reach well beyond our fans, managing to appeal to new partners as well as older ones. We set up an outstanding half time show with Noemi, a well known Italian singer and a huge Roma fan, creating a unique atmosphere and a great event. Roma-Barcelona gave us the opportunity to amaze new people who had an exciting night both from the sporting and the entertainment sides. We’re very proud of what we achieved, of course the challenge now is to keep this standard.” n
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GROWING THE WOMEN’S GAME THE RISE OF WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
tball is
BRAND VOICE
engaging a younger, more female, more family-focused audience – slightly different to those we reach via men’s football, but still highly relevant. We strongly believe that there will be more and more occasions where women’s football is the centrepiece of a big in-home watch party – and that’s where our social beverage and foods portfolio come into play. It’s easy to see why women’s football is growing in popularity. The players are accessible and relatable, and we’re starting to notice an increase in their star power and recognition too. Even the biggest matches are family- friendly, and there’s a great sense of fair play. There’s a fine balance to strike between keeping what makes the women’s game unique and really harnessing its commercial power – but we believe in the continued strong growth projections for its audience in years to come. PepsiCo has a long history of supporting women in sport, dating back to when we signed Mia
“Women’s foo just too big a part of how general football culture is evo lving to not invest in
ADAM WARNER, HEAD OF GLOBAL SPORTS & PARTNERSHIPS (PEPSICO)
“The growth of women’s football is a microcosm of an important change we’re seeing in society – elevating, celebrating and empowering women everywhere. And it means that women’s football is one of the biggest growth opportunities – if not the biggest – in sport for the foreseeable future. We believe PepsiCo can play a key role in promoting gender equality and boosting the growth of women’s football by rolling out initiatives across our brand portfolio, to drive engagement and conversation within the women’s game. It’s a smart thing to do – this is the way football is evolving and if we want our brands to continue to attach to and shape football culture, this is how to keep them relevant. And it can help us grow our business,
its future”
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Hamm in 1997 as our second-ever roster athlete after Michael Jordan. PepsiCo has been a proud sponsor of the UEFA Champions League since 2015, and in 2020, we became the first men’s partner to step into UEFA Women’s Champions League too. This multi-year deal across men’s and women’s football is now the company’s largest global platform, connecting people from all over the world through their passion for football.
We believe a sponsor like PepsiCo with mass awareness brands like Pepsi, Lay’s, Gatorade & a rich history in football can give an incredible platform and reach for Women’s football and footballers to continue to fuel the mainstream growth of the game – something fans see as an important role for sponsors to fulfil. We’re committed to the future of women’s football, bringing our influence and scale to shed light on it and support it globally.” n
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EVERYONE IS WELCOME
NOT JUST FOR GIRLS
REACHING OUT TO YOUNGER FANS
I t is also important to note that although people who are very interested in the women’s game can be any age, they are likely to be younger than in the men’s game. Taken together with the gender findings above, this suggests that women’s football is bringing new fans into the game to add to the more traditional fan base. This is great news for football as a whole, not just the women’s game. n
H istorically, women’s encouraging them to attend matches with their families. However, although girls are of course attracted to the women’s game and enjoy having visible role models to emulate, and although families frequently report that the women’s game is a more football has often been marketed towards girls, welcoming and affordable leisure activity than the men’s equivalent, it is important to note that our data demonstrates that both men and women are fans of the women’s game. Notably, it is encouraging to see that just as many men make up the core audience – those who say that they are very interested in the women’s game. Our data for the men’s game suggests that there is a 60/40 split, men to women. n Source: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QA1 – Thinking about how you’ve followed football in the last month, how interested or uninterested have you been in each of the following types or forms of football? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (5,400); Very interested in men’s football (2,984); Very interested in women’s football (1,429)
Women’s football attracts a more gender balanced audience than the men’s game Interest audience by gender
The women’s football audience is younger than that of the men’s game.* Core audience by age
Males Females
16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
100%
100%
10%
16%
90%
90%
18%
80%
80%
48%
21%
19
60%
70%
70%
25%
60%
60%
24%
50%
50%
40%
40%
31%
30%
30%
52%
26%
40%
20%
20%
Source: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QA1 – Thinking about how you’ve followed football in the last month, how interested or uninterested have you been in each of the following types or forms of football? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (5,400); Very interested in men’s football (2,984); Very interested in women’s football (1,429) * Figures have been rounded up and don’t display decimal places. The total based on the actual figures is 100%
10%
10%
14% 16%
0%
0%
MEN’S
WOMEN’S
MEN’S
WOMEN’S
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
THE USA IS A KEY MARKET W hile there is interest in the women’s game in all the markets we
INTEREST AND ENGAGEMENT IN WOMEN’S FOOTBALL IS HIGHER IN THE USA THAN ANY OTHER MARKET SURVEYED Behaviours & attitudes to women’s football amongst US fans
in Europe, with clubs having a relatively shorter history. However, the huge success of the USA Women’s National Team (USWNT) – FIFA Women’s World Cup winners in 1991, 1999, 2015, 2019, and Olympic gold medallists in 1996, 2004, 2008 and 2012 – has meant that the profile of women’s football in general has been high, with some players becoming national celebrities outside of sport, such as Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, Abby Wambach, Mia Hamm, Hope Solo and Kristine Lilly, all of whom have made inroads into establishing their own media careers worldwide. Some of their top stars, including Rapinoe, Morgan, and Carli Lloyd, have proved themselves important footballing and commercial assets to clubs in Europe as well. As a result the USA represents a key audience for women’s football, and for European clubs looking to promote and increase fandom for their women’s team. n
tested, some markets present bigger opportunities than others. Of all markets, football followers in the USA were the most interested and engaged with the women’s
75%
58%
19%
game. This isn’t surprising – women’s football has been
established for decades in the USA, with Title IX ensuring equal funding for sport for girls and women in educational establishments, leading to a competitive, high- quality college game and thus the very best players from around the world attracted to the USA for their tertiary study. Their professional leagues have had a chequered and often precarious existence, but the current NWSL set-up, with teams awarded licences to compete, is operating successfully and expanding into new geographical markets. Football club fandom for the men’s and women’s game in the USA contrasts markedly with the traditions of football fandom
20
l HAVE SHOPPED/ BROWSED FOR MERCHANDISE
l INTERESTED IN WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
l HAVE WATCHED WOMEN’S FOOTBALL ON TV
61%
71%
72%
l THINK EVERY CLUB SHOULD HAVE A WOMEN’S TEAM
l THINK THEIR WOMEN’S CLUB IS AS IMPORTANT AS THEIR MEN’S CLUB
l FANS SHOULD DO MORE TO SUPPORT
WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
Source: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QA1. Thinking about how you’ve followed football in the last month, how interested or uninterested have you been in each of the following types or forms of football? QA2. And thinking again about all forms of football, in which, if any, of the following ways did you engage with football in the last month? QY6. To
what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Base: All football fans in the US, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (912)
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
FLYING THE FLAG IN LESS TRADITIONAL MEN’S FOOTBALL MARKETS I n other markets that are perceived as less traditional centres for men’s football – such as China and Mexico – a higher proportion
clocked in 2018 – then an all-time global record – in 2022 that milestone fell, with 52,654 fans going to watch the first match of the Apertura final between Tigres and Club America. More than that, 5.3 million people watched it across television and streaming platforms. As in the US, fans in these other markets are
also less weighed down by ‘traditional’ male- dominated views of football, and therefore more inclined to see women’s football as a core element of the football landscape. Women’s football has the potential in these markets to become even more popular, just as we see in the USA.
of fans are interested in both men’s and women’s football than is seen in more ‘mature’ football markets in Europe. Many fans in these markets also see the women’s team they support as of equal importance to the men’s team they follow – 75% in China and 62% in Mexico. Indeed, both China and Mexico have played an important part in the development of women’s football; China hosted the first-ever official FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991 (formally titled the First FIFA World Championship for Women’s Football for the M&Ms Cup) and reached the final of the third edition in 1999; Mexico hosted the famous unofficial Women’s World Cup in 1971, with matches selling out the historic Azteca Stadium. More recently, Mexico have been building strong links with their near neighbours in the USA, with the Mexican national team playing NWSL teams in friendlies that attract tens of thousands of fans. Attendances are strong and growing domestically as well; in the Liga MX Femenil, records are being set and broken. After a highest club match attendance of 51,211 was
21
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
FOOTBALL FANS IN EMERGING MARKETS ARE ALMOST AS INTERESTED IN WOMEN’S FOOTBALL AS MEN’S FOOTBALL
Interest and attitudes to women’s football Interested in men’s Interested in women’s
THINK THE WOMEN’S TEAM THEY SUPPORT IS AS IMPORTANT TO THEM AS ANY MEN’S TEAM
% difference
7% 12% 22% 24% 30% 31% 31% 31% 31% 32% 38% 42% 42%
100%
90%
80%
70%
22
60%
75%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
62%
0%
Source: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QA1. Thinking about how you’ve followed football in the last month, how interested or uninterested have you been in each of the following types or forms of football? QY6. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: US (912); China (905); Netherlands (303); Mexico (310); Germany (305); France (305); Spain (311); Belgium (304); Sweden (322); UK (321); Italy (318); Scotland (304); Japan (309)
CHI
USA
NED
MEX
GER
FRA
SPA
BEL
SWE
UK
ITA
SCO
JAP
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
GLOBAL APPEAL Regardless of the state of local football development, fans across all markets increasingly feel that clubs should be actively promoting and engaging with the women’s game, and indeed that they have a responsibility to play a role in its development. In turn, fans are likely to view clubs much more positively if they have their own women’s team or are seen to be investing in the women’s game. Around two thirds of followers agree that “A big football club today has a responsibility to have a women’s team (69%)”, think that “Every club should have a women’s team (68%)” and agree that “Football clubs should invest in building support for their women’s team” (68%). n
23
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
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It is crucial that clubs understand that it is not only women who are interested in the women’s game. Men and women are equally likely to be ‘very interested’ in the women’s game. It can also be seen as a way of engaging younger fans, which is an important goal for football as a whole. Fans in less ‘mature’ football markets – and where football fandom is a more recent phenomenon – often have high interest in the women’s game and are not weighed down by negative preconceptions. In more mature European markets, fans are increasingly interested in the women’s game and likely to adopt teams based on their support of the men’s team. Regardless of their route to fandom, fans across markets want to see clubs investing in the women’s game and look favourably on those that do so.
CLUB VOICE
AMANDINE BARREAU, MARKETING MANAGER (OL FEMININ)
“At OL, we have a very international team, and we have the chance to build so much upon that. I think it’s really special: girls from different family backgrounds, many cultures, many values, many hobbies. When I arrived at the club, I thought, ‘I want to know more about each player because they look like interesting people to me.’ Some of our players are real superstars in their home countries. For example, Christiane Endler in Chile – if you ask people, ‘Do you know her?’, they’d say, ‘Of course I know her! Obviously I know her!’ She and Wendie Renard are both international brand ambassadors for adidas. That’s something really special that we have: a balance
24
players are r eal et’s be bolder !”
“Some of our superstars – l
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
between girls who were born, raised and became footballers in Lyon, and our international players. It’s an area where we could connect more with a fan base in those other countries. We are travelling a long path from trying to replicate what we used to do on the men’s side to creating a full, independent, 360 strategy for the women’s team. We are looking forward to having a staff team devoted solely to marketing the women’s side. I think it’ll change our whole mindset – being dedicated 100 per cent to the women. We are at a turning point – we want to go to a whole new audience, going deeper into the knowledge we have of our existing audience and enlarging it. We’ve reached our glass ceiling trying to tap into the men’s following. Now we need to bring more people to the women’s game. With our new collaboration in the USA, alongside owner Michele Kang and Washington Spirit of the
NWSL, I feel we can learn a lot from what they do. Before, we’ve pushed our messages to fans by focusing mostly on the sports side: a journalistic approach, reporting results and so on. Our next step is to start portraying our players as people, engaging with fans everywhere in a way that isn’t just about playing football, but their backgrounds and their stories on and off the pitch. We need to start putting a real value on attending women’s matches. Rather than inviting people and having cheap ticket prices, let’s think the other way round – build the basics of getting people interested in our players and then say, ‘OK – come and see them play and enjoy a great day out!’ The game alone is not enough. What can we come up with to make it special for our new target audience – the ones who are coming to us fresh and who are not already fans of the men’s team? It’s not just about the 90 minutes on the pitch.” n
25
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
League, the UEFA Women’s EURO and all women’s competitions are in the same package as the men’s. Just Eat Takeaway.com also know that women’s football is a great vehicle for bigger societal messages. The women’s football platform is also the ideal occasion to bring our broader responsible business mission to life: for 2023’s UEFA Women’s Champions League final, we partnered with UEFA, PepsiCo and Heineken on a ‘circular packaging’ initiative, meaning food containers were returned and washed, ready to be reused in the future, and we are super proud of it. Perhaps in the beginning, women’s football was attractive to brands like us because of the diversity and inclusion perspective. As our CEO said: “Our brand is for everybody, and sports should be too.” Now more and more the exposure
BRAND VOICE
MARIJN LUCHTMAN, GLOBAL HEAD OF SPONSORSHIPS (JUST EAT TAKEAWAY.COM)
“It’s so important to bring women’s football forward, from top to bottom; it has such a broad reach. Just Eat Takeaway.com sponsor (besides all UEFA’s Women’s competitions and tournaments) grassroots girls’ teams to accelerate the growth of Women’s football even more. We give a voice to all these girls, who had to overcome a lot to come where they are today. Promoting Women’s football in their local communities is crucial. Our ambassador Vivianne Miedema launched this campaign for us in the build up to the UWCL Final in Eindhoven in June 2023 and it made a huge impact. We want women’s football and its players to have the same facilities, training, physiotherapists – basically, equal treatment to men on and off the pitch. We sponsor all European men’s football so we also sponsor women’s football: the UEFA Women’s Champions
26
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THE ROUTES TO FURTHER GROWTH
INCREASING ATTENDANCE A key challenge for the women’s game is to encourage more fans to engage in a more frequent and sustained way. As already
THOSE IMPROVING, AVERAGE ATTENDANCES ARE STILL MODEST IN COMPARISON WITH PEAK AUDIENCES Matchday attendances in major women’s leagues & tournaments
illustrated, interest in the women’s game has increased significantly over recent years, leading to consistently high match attendances on the biggest occasions. The success of recent major international tournaments, coupled with the ‘big-game strategy’ of many European clubs, where matches are played in main stadia and heavily promoted, have successfully delivered eye-catching peak attendances. However, although high peak attendances are great news, and average attendance is on the rise across domestic and international competitions, there is a sizable disparity between average and peak attendances. This highlights the challenge for the women’s game: driving more frequent, sustained engagement. n
Peak at most recent tournament
Season
18/19
19/20
21/22
22/23*
2013
2017
2022
Tournament
Average
1,009
3,016
1,850
6,091
Average
8,676
7,888
18,554
28
Peak
5,265
38,362
20,241
47,367
Peak
41,301
28,192
87,912
BARCLAYS WOMEN’S SUPER LEAGUE (ENG)
UEFA WOMEN’S EUROS
18/19
21/22
22/23*
Season
Season
18/19
19/20
21/22
22/23*
Average
5,000
9,403
10,800
Average
6,024
7,389
5,104
7,917
Peak
22,911
91,648
72,262
Peak
21,144
25,218
27,278
32,000
NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCCER LEAGUE (USA)
UEFA WOMEN’S CHAMPION’S LEAGUE
Notes: * Highest attendance at time or writing Sources: England: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%9319_FA_WSL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019%E2%80%9320_FA_WSL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021%E2%80%9322_FA_WSL https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/2022%E2%80%9323_Women%27s_Super_League https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/womens-super-league/attendances Europe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Women%27s_Euro_2013 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Women%27s_Euro_2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Women%27s_Euro_2022 USA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Women%27s_Soccer_League_attendance Germany: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%9319_Frauen-Bundesliga https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019%E2%80%9320_Frauen-Bundesliga https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021%E2%80%9322_Frauen-Bundesliga https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022%E2%80%9323_Frauen-Bundesliga
THE ROUTES TO FURTHER GROWTH
INCREASING ENGAGEMENT I mprovements to the frequency of engagement could be made more widely than just through match attendances. The difference between average
Women’s vs men’s football recent engagement (% of football fans who have engaged with women’s & men’s football in the last month) WHILE MOST HAVE ENGAGED WITH WOMEN’S FOOTBALL, RECENCY AND REGULARITY IS MUCH LOWER THAN IN THE MEN’S GAME
match attendances and peak attendances for the women’s game provides the clearest indication of the challenge for the women’s game. However, this engagement gap extends beyond attendance. The research shows that 81% of global football followers have engaged with the women’s game at some point, be it through match attendance, watching on TV, following news stories or through social media – but that engagement is lower and less frequent than for the men’s game. This highlights the challenge – and the opportunity – to increase the frequency and regularity of all types of engagement with the women’s game. n
0%
10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 32%
WATCHED LIVE MATCHES AT HOME
65%
29%
WATCHED MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
49%
29
15%
BROWSED FOOTBALL NEWS/UPDATES
36%
10%
LISTENED OR WATCHED FAN-LED CONTENT
24%
10%
WATCHED LIVE MATCHES OUT OF HOME
32%
9%
SHARED FOOTBALL POSTS OR MEMES ON SOCIAL MEDIA
23%
Engaged with women’s football Engaged with men’s football
8%
LISTENED TO PODCASTS ABOUT FOOTBALL
18%
Sources: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022, QW1 – In which, if any, of the following ways have you ever engaged with women’s football? QW2 - In which, if any, of the following ways have you engaged with women’s football in the past month? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (5,400)
8%
ATTENDED LIVE FOOTBALL MATCHES
26%
THE ROUTES TO FURTHER GROWTH
UNDERSTANDING BARRIERS TO ATTENDANCE AND ENGAGEMENT I f we can understand the barriers to more frequent and regular attendance and engagement, we can take positive steps to remove them. The survey found that there were two sets of barriers: emotional and practical. WOMEN’S FOOTBALL FOLLOWING IS TYPICALLY MORE PASSIVE AND LESS EMOTIONAL Emotional connection / level of fandom with women’s & men’s football
31% are “fans” of women’s football
EMOTIONAL BARRIERS – CREATING A NARRATIVE A lack of emotional connection is a barrier to more frequent engagement: fans are interested and want to engage with the women’s game, but many don’t feel the same need and passion we see in the men’s game. As we have seen, most (81%) football followers have engaged with women’s football at some point. Similarly, most (82%) would claim they follow the sport, at least in passing. However, most of these are casual followers: two-thirds of those who follow the men’s game claim to be ‘fans’ whereas only just over a third (38%) of those who follow the women’s game feel the same. And where fandom does exist in the women’s game, it is often more focused on international teams than club teams.
28% FOLLOW IN PASSING
18% SHOW NO INTRESEST
19% BIG FANS
13% HUGE FANS
22% FOLLOW CLOSELY
WOMEN’S
30
82% follow women’s football
65% are “fans” of men’s football
12% FOLLOW IN PASSING
22% FOLLOW CLOSELY
31% BIG FANS
34% HUGE FANS
MEN’S
Sources: ECA/MTM Sport Future of Fandom tracker, July 2022 QY2- How much do you follow women’s professional football? QD2. Which of the following, if any, do you currently support or follow? Base: All football fans by market, May 2022 to July 2022: Total (2,665) * Figures have been rounded up and don’t display decimal places. The total based on the actual figures is 100%
100% follow men’s football
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