In 1984, the Women’s European Championship opened with England playing one of the inaugural matches before a modest crowd of around 1,000 spectators. Fast forward to today’s games, the landscape has transformed dramatically. More than 500,000 tickets have been snapped up for the 31 matches of the current year’s tournament, beginning next week in Switzerland. Predictions suggest this event may surpass the previous attendance record of 575,000, set during the 2022 edition in England, where 87,000 fans filled Wembley Stadium to witness the final.
The rapid climb in popularity of women’s soccer, both in Europe and globally, has been remarkable. Athletes are reaching new levels of strength, speed, and technical skill, making these matches increasingly captivating. Although women’s soccer has not yet matched the revenue of the men’s game, the sport is growing swiftly, with increased investments at both the international and club levels. Veteran players who began their careers over a decade ago view this pace of progress with astonishment.
Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas, a two-time Ballon d’Or winner, remarked on the transformation since she started her professional journey in 2010. Reflecting on past aspirations, she noted that earlier generations never envisioned making a living from soccer. “Increasing the visibility of our sport allows young girls to dream of becoming professional soccer players,” she stated. She acknowledges a favorable evolution, attributing it to recent investments that enable players to enhance their skills.
Key football governing bodies have implemented initiatives intended to advance women’s soccer. UEFA’s “Unstoppable” strategy aims to promote football as the most-played team sport for women and girls throughout Europe by 2030. Moreover, it seeks to establish more professional leagues across the continent. At the club level, developments have been significant, with elite soccer clubs such as Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Chelsea taking women’s soccer seriously. Over the past decade, the professionalization of leagues has inspired countless potential female soccer athletes.
Lise Klaveness, President of the Norwegian Football Association, pointed out the importance of developing a comprehensive system, allowing girls to envisage soccer as a viable career. According to Klaveness, the essence of soccer lies with local clubs, and women’s connection to these clubs is more pronounced now than in the past. Club leaders are displaying increased dedication and ambition toward their women’s teams, demonstrating commitment by attending matches and supporting their endeavors.
As club-level soccer has expanded, international competitions have followed suit. The Euro tournament began in 1984 with only four teams. Over time, it expanded to include more teams, reaching its current format of 16 teams since the 2017 edition. Attendance and television viewing have seen significant growth alongside these changes. For instance, the 2022 Euro registered an average match attendance of over 18,000, compared to just over 5,000 in the 2009 edition. Globally, the cumulative live viewership for Euro 2022 hit 365 million across various media, more than doubling since 2017.
This surge in viewership and attendance is mirrored in club soccer, as teams play in larger venues and clubs increase investments in their women’s programs. In 2022, Barcelona hosted Women’s Champions League matches that each attracted over 90,000 attendees. This shift has led investors to view women’s soccer as a profitable venture, a sentiment shared by Laura Harvey, Seattle Reign coach. Having started her coaching career in 2006 with Birmingham City, Harvey recognizes the extensive evolution of the game over the years.
A notable shift was UEFA’s 2017 decision to unbundle sponsorship rights for women’s competitions, paving the way for separate commercial rights transactions from the men’s game. This approach aimed explicitly to bolster the development of women’s soccer competitions, gaining enough success that FIFA and another sports governing bodies adopted similar strategies. Various sponsors now back women’s soccer, with anticipated revenues for Euro 2025 projected to see a significant rise. The event’s prize money also reflects this upward trajectory, more than doubling that of the 2022 edition.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin emphasized that Euro 2025’s influence extends into future investments, setting unprecedented records for prize money and sponsorship interest, drawing more funds into the women’s game. He hopes this will catalyze further advancements across women’s professional soccer in Switzerland and Europe. Meanwhile, Klaveness cautions against financial separations between wealthy major leagues and their semi-professional counterparts, noting the importance of maintaining inclusivity and cohesion within the sport’s development.