Introduction
In 1920, fifty-eight thousand spectators gathered at Goodison Park in Liverpool to watch a women's football match between Dick, Kerr Ladies and St. Helens Ladies. That figure was higher than the attendance at any men's football match in England at the time. Just one year later, the English Football Association issued a ruling banning women from playing football on its grounds, on the pretext that the game was "unsuitable for their bodies." The ban lasted fifty years until it was lifted in 1971.
This stark contradiction between immense popularity and official prohibition sums up the journey of women's football across an entire century. It is the story of a sport born of the crowds, then buried institutionally, then rising again. In the last six years specifically — from 2020 to 2026 — the game has witnessed an unprecedented transformation: record attendance figures, massive commercial investment, global media attention, and technical and tactical development placing the women's game on a par with full professionalism.
This guide recounts the journey in full: from the roots of the ban, through the gradual return, to packed stadiums and major tournaments. It is aimed at coaches, players, and those interested in sports culture who want to understand how women's football transformed from a marginalized sport into a global phenomenon.
The Basics
The Historical Roots of the Ban
The ban on women's football was not a purely sporting decision, but a social and economic one. In the 1920s, women's matches were attracting huge crowds in Britain, especially during the First World War when women replaced men in the factories, and teams linked to the factories were formed to raise funds. When the war ended and the men returned, the English FA felt a direct threat to its control of the game, so it used a false "medical" pretext to ban the game on its grounds in 1921.
This ban spread to many European countries. In Germany, the game was officially banned until 1970. In Brazil, a presidential decree was issued in 1941 prohibiting sports "not suited to the female nature," and it was not lifted until 1979. In France, the federation halted women's football activity in the 1930s. And so, an entire generation of women was deprived of playing the game in an organized manner.
The Gradual Return (1971–2010)
After the ban was lifted, the game began to return very slowly. The first official European championship for women was founded in 1984, and the first Women's World Cup was held in China in 1991 with the participation of twelve national teams. But financial support and infrastructure remained almost nonexistent. Players played the game alongside their jobs, and many paid out of their own pockets to travel to training camps.
The real transformation began at the turn of the millennium. In 2001, the American Women's Professional Soccer league (WUSA) was established, followed by a more stable league, the NWSL, in 2012. In Europe, major clubs such as Arsenal, Chelsea, and Lyon began integrating women's teams under their umbrella, providing resources and professional training.
The Current Structure of the Game
Today, women's football consists of an integrated pyramid:
- International level: the World Cup, continental tournaments (Women's Euro, Copa América Femenina, AFC Women's Asian Cup), and the Olympic Games.
- Continental club level: the UEFA Women's Champions League, the AFC Women's Champions League, and the Copa Libertadores Femenina.
- Domestic leagues: professional leagues in England (WSL), Spain (Liga F), the United States (NWSL), France, Germany, and others.
- Grassroots level: girls' academies, school programs, and university competitions.
Tactical and Technical Differences
From a technical standpoint, women's football is characterized by distinctive tactical features. Studies indicate that women's matches are often characterized by a continuous pace of play, more short passes, and a greater reliance on organized collective play. The goal rate in some women's tournaments may also be higher than its men's counterpart. These characteristics have made the women's game a tactical style in its own right, not a miniature version of the men's game.
How It Is Applied (Steps)
Step One: Building a Fan Base from the Grassroots
No women's national team or club can thrive without a fan base. This begins with investment in school and neighborhood programs. In England, the women's football association launched the "Wildcats" initiative, which aims to attract girls aged 5 to 11 to the game through free weekly sessions. The result: more than 100,000 girls participated in the program between 2020 and 2024.
Step Two: Providing a Professional Training Environment
Professionalism begins with the coach. Women's teams need coaches holding accredited certificates (UEFA A or Pro), a full medical staff, and technical analysts. In Spain, after "La Roja" won the 2023 World Cup, clubs doubled their investments in the technical staffs of women's teams by a rate exceeding 200%.
Step Three: Investing in Infrastructure
Stadiums and facilities are not a luxury. Women's teams moving to play in the main stadiums of their parent clubs changed the equation. In 2022, Barcelona Femení moved its major matches to Camp Nou, breaking the world record with an attendance of 91,553 spectators in a match against Real Madrid.
Step Four: Marketing and Commercial Sponsorship
Sponsors follow the fans. When viewership and attendance increase, the value of commercial rights increases. In 2021, the Women's Super League (WSL) signed a television broadcast deal with the BBC and Sky worth 8 million pounds sterling per year — a figure that later doubled in the 2024 renewal.
Step Five: Media and Coverage
Media coverage creates stars. After Women's Euro 2022, the England national team players became national icons. A 300% increase in television coverage during the tournament brought in new fans who had not previously been interested in the game.
Step Six: Governance and Institutional Equality
Equality in financial prizes is a fundamental requirement. In 2022, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced full pay equality between the men's and women's national teams. And in 2024, UEFA approved an increase in the Women's Euro prizes to bring them closer to their men's counterpart.
Common Mistakes
Mistake One: Treating the Women's Game as a "Second Version"
The biggest mistake coaches and officials make is treating women's football as a miniature version of the men's game. This leads to applying tactical plans that do not suit the characteristics of the players, and to neglecting the independent development of the game.
Mistake Two: Focusing on Results Instead of Building
Some federations push for quick results without building a base. The result: national teams that shine temporarily and then disappear. Real building needs at least ten years of investment in the age categories.
Mistake Three: Neglecting the Specific Medical Aspect
Players are more susceptible to certain injuries such as anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears, at a rate reaching up to three times that of men in some studies. Ignoring specific prevention and rehabilitation programs leads to major human and sporting losses.
Mistake Four: Late Marketing
Waiting for success before marketing is a strategic mistake. Marketing must coincide with building. In Australia and New Zealand, marketing for the 2023 World Cup began four years before it kicked off, which contributed to achieving an attendance exceeding 1.9 million spectators.
Mistake Five: Ignoring the Cultural and Social Aspect
Women's football is not just a sport, but a social cause. Ignoring the cultural context — such as family barriers and societal pressures — leads to the failure of programs despite their technical quality.
Mistake Six: Unsustainable Funding
Relying on temporary grants without building a sustainable business model leads to the collapse of projects. The successful model combines sponsorship, ticketing, television rights, and merchandise sales.
Examples from 2020–2026
Euro 2022: The European Turning Point
England hosted the European Women's Championship in July 2022. The final at Wembley Stadium was attended by 87,192 spectators — a record for any European championship final, women's or men's. More than 365 million people around the world watched the tournament. England's 2-1 victory over Germany in extra time turned the national team players into national stars, and women's football in England became a cultural phenomenon.
The 2023 Women's World Cup: The Record Numbers
The tournament was held in Australia and New Zealand with the participation of 32 national teams for the first time. Total attendance exceeded 1.9 million spectators. The Spain–England final in Sydney was watched by 75,784 spectators in the stadium, and more than 2 billion cumulatively across screens. Spain's 1-0 victory gave the country its first world title, and ignited a societal debate about the future of the game in Spain.
Barcelona Femení: The "Camp Nou" Phenomenon
On March 30, 2022, Barcelona Femení played against Real Madrid in the Champions League before 91,553 spectators at Camp Nou — the highest attendance in the history of a women's football match. The scene was repeated in April 2025 when Barcelona hosted the Women's Champions League final before more than 50,000 spectators, confirming that women's popular support is not an exception but a rising pattern.
The American NWSL: The Sustainability Model
The American women's league (NWSL) witnessed expansion in 2024 with the addition of two new teams, and average attendance rose to more than 11,000 spectators per match — an increase exceeding 40% over 2022. The league also signed a historic broadcast deal worth 240 million dollars over four years, making it the most expensive broadcast deal for a women's league in the world.
The Women's Champions League: A New System
From the 2025–2026 season, UEFA introduced the "Swiss system" modeled on the men's game, with an expansion of the number of teams and an increase in the number of matches. The goal: doubling commercial revenues and raising the level of competitiveness.
Arab National Teams: Promising First Steps
In the Arab region, serious steps have begun. Morocco hosted the 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations and reached the final, then qualified for the first time in its history for the 2023 World Cup and reached the round of sixteen. Saudi Arabia launched a local women's league in 2022, and Jordan continues to develop its national team. These steps, despite their spacing, indicate a gradual cultural shift.
Players Who Changed the Image
Among the players who made this transformation: Aitana Bonmatí (Spain), who won the Ballon d'Or in 2023 and 2024; Sam Kerr (Australia), her country's all-time top scorer; Alexia Putellas (Spain), who led a protest movement against harassment in the Spanish federation; and Aisha Al-Nashwani (Morocco), the first Arab player to score in the Women's World Cup.
Summary (5 Points)
First: The ban was political, not medical. The prohibition of women's football in the 1920s was not based on scientific reasons, but on an institutional fear of popular competition. Understanding this context is necessary to understand the difficulty of the return.
Second: The return required fifty years of silent building. From the lifting of the ban in 1971 to the popular explosion in 2022, the game passed through slow stages of building: founding leagues, developing academies, persuading sponsors, and changing mindsets.
Third: The fans are there — they just need a suitable environment. The Camp Nou, Euro 2022, and 2023 World Cup matches proved that public turnout for the women's game may exceed its men's counterpart when the opportunity, stadiums, and appropriate marketing are available.
Fourth: Professionalism is not a luxury but a condition for survival. The transition from amateurism to professionalism — with contracts, technical staffs, sponsorship, and television broadcasting — is what turned the game from a marginal activity into a sports industry.
Fifth: The next challenge is sustainability and real equality. Despite the achievements, the gap in wages, investment, and opportunities still exists in many countries. The next stage needs fair governance, investment in the age categories, and continuous media coverage that is not tied only to major tournaments.
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The journey of women's football from the factory grounds of Liverpool in 1920 to the finals of Wembley, Sydney, and Camp Nou is not just a sports story. It is a story of perseverance in playing despite all attempts to silence it, and proof that when sport opens its doors to everyone, the crowds return with record numbers.