The decision from the FA regarding the return of women’s football may be over a week away, but in what capacity can we expect it to return? Has the coronavirus caused as many problems to the women’s game as it has to the men’s game? How severe are the financial and logistical implications that have been brought to the fore over the past few months? 3-At-The-Back spoke to journalists Sophie Penney and Natalie Barresi to seek the answers to these issues, and for their wider thoughts on the future of the women’s game.
A recent FIFPro report described the virus as an “existential threat” to women’s football. Considering the lack of funding that the WSL and women’s leagues across the continent experience (especially compared to men’s football), this threat is a real one, and was exemplified by Barresi: “…many women’s leagues are being cut short and many clubs aren’t able to afford their players’ or employees’ salaries.” The majority of women are not paid wages high enough to rely on their footballing abilities solely as a source of income, and now they will be getting even less from their clubs.
The aforementioned threat is not experienced in the men’s game to the same degree. Barresi outlines how clubs are only focusing on the survival of their men’s teams, and that in order to survive, the women’s leagues “will definitely need some sort of economic aid to help impulse the growth of clubs when football comes back.”
She highlighted her disappointment with the lack of financial support from clubs to their women’s branches and expressed how it was even more upsetting, given how much momentum the year of 2019 provided for the women’s game.
Since the World Cup last year, interest in the women’s game has grown exponentially. Stakeholders hope that such interest has not diminished due to the current pandemic, others believe enthusiasm may be even higher than before due to the fact that there has been no football of any form for so long. The SheBelieves cup gained a lot of media interest this February and Barresi believes that interest placed in women’s domestic leagues and international competitions will not diminish: “the interest in women’s football might be slow to come back, but I think it will get back to where it was before and possibly higher.”
A recent FIFPro report described the virus as an “existential threat” to women’s football. Considering the lack of funding that the WSL and women’s leagues across the continent experience (especially compared to men’s football), this threat is a real one, and was exemplified by Barresi: “…many women’s leagues are being cut short and many clubs aren’t able to afford their players’ or employees’ salaries.” The majority of women are not paid wages high enough to rely on their footballing abilities solely as a source of income, and now they will be getting even less from their clubs.
The aforementioned threat is not experienced in the men’s game to the same degree. Barresi outlines how clubs are only focusing on the survival of their men’s teams, and that in order to survive, the women’s leagues “will definitely need some sort of economic aid to help impulse the growth of clubs when football comes back.”
She highlighted her disappointment with the lack of financial support from clubs to their women’s branches and expressed how it was even more upsetting, given how much momentum the year of 2019 provided for the women’s game.
Since the World Cup last year, interest in the women’s game has grown exponentially. Stakeholders hope that such interest has not diminished due to the current pandemic, others believe enthusiasm may be even higher than before due to the fact that there has been no football of any form for so long. The SheBelieves cup gained a lot of media interest this February and Barresi believes that interest placed in women’s domestic leagues and international competitions will not diminish: “the interest in women’s football might be slow to come back, but I think it will get back to where it was before and possibly higher.”
USA celebrate their World Cup final victory last year. England lost 2-1 to them in the semi-finals.
Currently residing in Spain, Barresi also gave a continental outlook. Spain and France both cancelled their seasons, with Germany aiming to bring theirs back on 29 May and England in June. One issue in Spain that she pointed to was that, when the Spanish Football Federation announced what would happen to the leagues, they didn’t classify the women’s leagues as professional sport. This led to players expressing their frustration towards the RFEF (notably Merel van Dongen) as it had supposedly been trying to draw more attention to the women’s game. These inconsistencies also give rise to issues regarding the UEFA Women’s Champions League. With different nations operating within different schedules and time frames, there is little room to fit in Champions League matches. However, Barresi stated that UEFA are aiming to come to a decision on 25 May.
Domestically, the WSL and lower tiers are experiencing the same issues as the men’s game. Perhaps more severe in the women’s game however is the contract situation. Penney described the situation as “extremely fragile” and stated that many clubs haven’t yet made a decisive move (as a large proportion of contracts expire at the end of this month). Many players’ contracts have a length of only one or two years, owing to the tight budgets that most clubs run. A lot of the clubs’ incomes rely on the incomes of their men’s teams, which themselves will be taking a huge hit. Women’s clubs struggle greatly if their men’s clubs do. AFC Fylde disbanded their partnership with their women’s side, resulting in them having to fold. In 2007, when Charlton were relegated from the Premier League, they too disbanded their women’s team as it was viewed as an unnecessary cost to the football club.
Penney stated that clubs have been very “tight-lipped” about how to resolve the season, and have stressed that the FA and WSL must take a safety-first approach. Even Liverpool, who are bottom of the WSL, have expressed their desire to have the season played out – an attitude we haven’t seen replicated on the men’s side of the game. Due to the tightness of the league upon its cancellation (only four points separate the top three), different methods of resolution would result in different outcomes. A decision on this is supposed to be made in an FA meeting later this month.
One proposal was the option of playing all the remaining 82 matches over a six-week period at one central venue. Penney stated that the idea of a central venue is beneficial to many clubs as they share their facilities with men’s teams anyway. However, she had some reservations about the idea as this method ignores the fans. “A lot of the women’s game is geared towards getting the fans involved.” Many clubs also rely on ticket revenues heavily, and the estimated cost of this central-venue-resolution is about £3million (in order to cover testing protocols and reimburse the clubs’ losses). But who will fund this? Penney warned of sponsors potentially cancelling their funding due to their own financial situations, and with games all played in one location, the opportunities for prospective sponsors are scarce.
Domestically, the WSL and lower tiers are experiencing the same issues as the men’s game. Perhaps more severe in the women’s game however is the contract situation. Penney described the situation as “extremely fragile” and stated that many clubs haven’t yet made a decisive move (as a large proportion of contracts expire at the end of this month). Many players’ contracts have a length of only one or two years, owing to the tight budgets that most clubs run. A lot of the clubs’ incomes rely on the incomes of their men’s teams, which themselves will be taking a huge hit. Women’s clubs struggle greatly if their men’s clubs do. AFC Fylde disbanded their partnership with their women’s side, resulting in them having to fold. In 2007, when Charlton were relegated from the Premier League, they too disbanded their women’s team as it was viewed as an unnecessary cost to the football club.
Penney stated that clubs have been very “tight-lipped” about how to resolve the season, and have stressed that the FA and WSL must take a safety-first approach. Even Liverpool, who are bottom of the WSL, have expressed their desire to have the season played out – an attitude we haven’t seen replicated on the men’s side of the game. Due to the tightness of the league upon its cancellation (only four points separate the top three), different methods of resolution would result in different outcomes. A decision on this is supposed to be made in an FA meeting later this month.
One proposal was the option of playing all the remaining 82 matches over a six-week period at one central venue. Penney stated that the idea of a central venue is beneficial to many clubs as they share their facilities with men’s teams anyway. However, she had some reservations about the idea as this method ignores the fans. “A lot of the women’s game is geared towards getting the fans involved.” Many clubs also rely on ticket revenues heavily, and the estimated cost of this central-venue-resolution is about £3million (in order to cover testing protocols and reimburse the clubs’ losses). But who will fund this? Penney warned of sponsors potentially cancelling their funding due to their own financial situations, and with games all played in one location, the opportunities for prospective sponsors are scarce.
Beth England is the joint top scorer in the WSL this season, her Chelsea team sit just one point behind leaders Man City with a game in hand.
Tiers three to seven however have been declared null and void, with no promotions or relegations taking place. Barnsley WFC expressed their distaste and stated that the “process only took 48 hours”, and that “clubs were told at the last minute.” The FA maintained that they followed all the necessary procedures. Penney pointed out that, especially at the lower levels, this ruling could be crippling. Many clubs struggle to balance their books, let alone make a profit, so without ticket or sponsorship revenues, these clubs may be very close to oblivion.
Ultimately, Penney and Barresi are most concerned about the overall survival of the women’s game. Both hope that football clubs do not turn their back on their women’s branches. Even in the current situations, players and clubs have donated more in proportion to those on the men’s side of the game. The Lionesses also are donating towards Players Together for the NHS, and Chelsea WFC have teamed up with the charity Refuge.
Penney stated that grassroots participation in ladies’ football has increased by 54% since 2016. Preserving interest in football during these times is incredibly important for its survival. Hopefully, with the memories of the World Cup and the SheBelieves cup still resonating, the interest in the women’s game will be maintained. A recent FIFPro report, stressing that a new normal for football should be one which focuses on gender equality, can be seen as a positive for women’s football. Valuing and preserving women’s football are fundamentally important tasks – even more so in times like these.
Written by: Ben Rowe
Edited by: 3-At-The-Back
Ultimately, Penney and Barresi are most concerned about the overall survival of the women’s game. Both hope that football clubs do not turn their back on their women’s branches. Even in the current situations, players and clubs have donated more in proportion to those on the men’s side of the game. The Lionesses also are donating towards Players Together for the NHS, and Chelsea WFC have teamed up with the charity Refuge.
Penney stated that grassroots participation in ladies’ football has increased by 54% since 2016. Preserving interest in football during these times is incredibly important for its survival. Hopefully, with the memories of the World Cup and the SheBelieves cup still resonating, the interest in the women’s game will be maintained. A recent FIFPro report, stressing that a new normal for football should be one which focuses on gender equality, can be seen as a positive for women’s football. Valuing and preserving women’s football are fundamentally important tasks – even more so in times like these.
Written by: Ben Rowe
Edited by: 3-At-The-Back