Combine a women-centric ownership scenario with developing an organisation from the ground up: The success formula for women's football?
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Hello! Welcome back to?PITCHSIDE MONITOR,?your one stop guide to club management.?This week, we have a special edition dedicated to the FIFA Women's World Cup? . We will:
First up, is our section on club management.
It is another World Cup year and the stage is well set in Australia and New Zealand for the pinnacle event in the women’s international football calendar. It will be the third time the World Cup is held in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) region, equalling the three times it has been held in North America and Europe; but the first time it makes its way to Oceania or is being hosted by two different National Associations (and the first time ever in history of the World Cup history, both men's and women's, that it is played across two separate confederations).
FIFA and the entire women’s football community will be hoping that this World Cup final tournament continues the very positive trend set in previous years, with record ticket sales, attendances, and TV viewership figures waiting to be delivered.
At surface level, the build-up seems to be almost routine for such major sporting events, the same as other times – squads have been named, kits presented, training camps and send-off friendly matches arranged, and big goals set by the favourites, debutantes, and everyone else in between.
However, there are a few strange and confusing feelings floating in the air. On one side, there is a realisation that this is actually only the 9th Women’s World Cup, with the first-ever competition being held in 1991. For many decades prior to that, women’s football was belittled, restricted, and outright banned by football’s own governing bodies, and this is something that should never be forgotten. On the other hand, the build up to this year’s finals could be seen as somewhat underwhelming: even though the opening match has been sold out and the total number of realised tickets has gone above 1 million and the previous record set in France in 2019, we should not forget that 2023 sees an increase in the number of participating teams from 24 to 32, generating a total of 64 matches as compared to 52 in France. The run up to the event was also marred by the controversy over broadcasting rights, when FIFA did not get the bid values it was hoping for, especially from European broadcasters and was in a stand-off situation with them until quite late on in the day before finally reaching an agreement.
All of this presents the questions: 'Is women’s football currently developing at the pace it deserves, considering it is arguably the biggest unrealised value within all of global football? And secondly, is the current path of development pursued for the women’s game: which is characterised by transferring the structures, approaches, know-how and even the visual identity of men’s football; optimal in the long run or should there be an independent development pathway bespoke to the women’s game?'
In recent years, getting established men’s clubs to start their own women’s sections or take existing women’s teams 'under their wing' has been the preferred solution from National and International Governing Bodies seeking to grow women’s football quickly. This probably stems from the idea that, "we know pretty well how much the men’s game is able to generate, so if we do the same but in women’s football, then we should get to the same level fairly quickly." In this scenario, seeing men’s clubs as the key drivers of the development process clearly makes sense: they should have the methodologies that can be transferred and can also provide enough resources and human capital to make it all click. However, such an approach also generates a very powerful paradox: to make it all work quickly, men’s clubs with women’s teams as part of the structure can probably only rely on a transfusion of existing supporter bases and revenues from the men’s game to the women’s game rather than generating additional and new resources, so the whole concept of the exercise from their point of view becomes suspect. And in that case, the question will remain open as to how committed these men’s clubs are going to be to women’s football in the long-term.
This paradox might be behind the reluctance of broadcasters in many of the world’s leading football countries to pay significant amounts for women’s competitions, despite the demands for more money from governing bodies such as FIFA. If a season of the Women’s Super League in England is currently valued at only ￡8 Million, compared to well over ￡3 Billion for the men’s equivalent, what would be the most likely scenario for how parity could be achieved:
The first option is probably not going to be to the liking of men’s clubs and leagues, the second one will be difficult to 'sell' to consumers, and with regard to the third one – it is probably the one that has the most potential, but it requires a complete focus on women’s football as a completely separate 'product', with its own value rather than a complementary offering to men’s football or part of its 'community outreach' programme.
An interesting approach and possibly more successful for the long run is the one used by the likes of Angel City Football Club , which combines a women-centric ownership scenario with developing an organisation from the ground up, which will necessarily include the construction of a new market and organic business model, as it will be the basis of its success. In the same way, stand-alone women’s football clubs need to be protected and supported to grow in the European and global context, rather than pressed outside of the current ecosystem in favour of the supposed benefit of bringing men’s clubs into the women’s arena as the quick solution to professionalisation.
Ultimately, conflating the two games: the women’s and men’s one into a combined structure, or allowing the men’s game to essentially 'take over' women’s football as they can at the moment could be a counterproductive move. The main question for identifying those coming into women’s football should be: how motivated they are by the idea of growing a completely new market and business model, rather than trying to wrestle a little bit of the duvet from men’s football. The litmus test should be the new revenue that has been generated, and new people brought into the game both as participants and paying customers. If women’s football competes with men’s for these and are minimally successful, the men’s game will find a way to squeeze out and shaft women’s football for a second time.
In our Football Talks section this week, we caught up with? Sarai Bareman , Chief Women's Football Officer at FIFA .?We asked Sarai a few questions, and here is what she had to say.
1) This is the first ever FIFA Women's World Cup taking place in two confederations, what are the expectations for the growth of women’s football in the two regions?
For so many reasons the FIFA Women's World Cup? , will be a tournament of firsts. The first to be hosted in the Southern Hemisphere, the first to feature 32 teams, and the first to be co-hosted by two countries, from two confederations ( Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Oceania Football Confederation ). This is a huge opportunity for the growth of women’s football in Australia, New Zealand and the whole Asia Pacific region, a part of the world that is so close to my heart.
My expectations are: that in July and August, the eyes of the world will focus their sights on the greatest ever edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The FIFA Women’s World Cup is the single biggest lever we can pull, once every four years to accelerate the growth of the game at every level, whether that’s participation or enhancing the commercial value. We will experience a lift in all areas, like we saw recently with the President announcing that a total package of USD 152 million would be on offer for participants at this year's tournament, three times more than the previous edition in France four years ago and over 10 times more than the amount offered at the 2015 tournament in Canada.
Since our two hosts were appointed, the cultural movement of women’s football has gained more momentum in the host regions. For example, we have seen more girls and women playing the game across Oceania. In Asia we have two debutant teams, Vietnam and The Philippines, whose qualifications have already triggered a new wave of interest in the women’s game in their respective countries. FIFA ’s ultimate goal is to have 60 million girls and women playing football by 2026 and the FIFA Women’s World Cup is one of the most powerful tools we have, to achieve this goal. This will only increase as we draw closer to July and for the many years that follow. This is an incredible opportunity and one that I’m sure will be maximised by all women’s football stakeholders in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia Pacific region.
2) In Europe, women’s football is growing more and more at the club level. Do you think this model will also duplicate in other regions?
The strength of club football is crucial to the success of the women’s game and it is encouraging to see clubs raising the bar not just in Europe, but all over the world. Of course, some of the world’s biggest football clubs are based in Europe and it’s great to see many of the traditional heavyweights investing in the professionalisation of women’s football but we are also seeing some fantastic examples in other parts of the world.
One that jumps to mind is the Liga MX Femenil in Mexico. Since its inaugural edition in 2017, the top league in Mexico has become one of the fastest growing women’s football leagues in the world. Last season we saw the first leg of the final played in front of a record breaking 52,654 fans and the second leg there were more than 40,000 fans in attendance at Tigres' Estadio Universitario.
This is just one example, thanks to the hard work of our clubs and leagues, who we work closely with. I am confident that club football will continue its upward trajectory all over the world, allowing more young girls to dream of making a career from football.
3) One of the important next stages in FIFA Forward 2.0 is operationalising the FIFA Benchmarking Report on women’s football. What are the steps being taken by FIFA to enhance women's football?
As we discussed earlier, women’s football competitions [both club and national team] are key drivers for the growth of the game but that is not enough alone. In September 2020 FIFA launched its revamped Women’s Football Development Programme , which aims to provide all 211 Member Associations with the opportunity to access additional resources and specialist expertise to develop women’s football.
These programmes touch on key areas such as: strategy, increasing participation, developing leagues, club licensing, capacity building, increasing the number of female coaches, and empowering more women to take leadership roles in football. Our approach with each Member Association is tailor made and the insights gained from the benchmarking report enhance our decision-making processes.?
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We are currently working on the third edition of the benchmarking report, which is the only comprehensive global analysis of the elite women’s football landscape. The report helps guide not just FIFA but all women’s football stakeholders to make key decisions related to the future development and professionalisation of women’s football.
Clubs are the foundation of our game, and by creating specific tools that paint an accurate picture of the women’s club landscape, we aim to increase the data available on women’s football and support decision-making processes for clubs and leagues.
In our Bottom-49 section this week, we would like to invite your attention to the infographic below, highlighting the broadcasting agreements of major women's leagues.
In our Football Insights section this week, we would like to share the player release analysis for the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup? .
(*List as on 10th June, some alterations are anticipated before the final lists are released. Stay tuned for more?updates on our LinkedIn page)
We recently asked you , "Who is the youngest pre-selected player participating in the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023?"
The correct answer to this question is Iman Beney.
*As a result of an ACL rupture Iman will finally not travel to Australia and New Zealand. We wish her a fast recovery
We would like to take the opportunity this week to highlight our work on the strategic remodelling of the UEFA Women's Champions League. Our Managing Partners were the main drivers for the UEFA Women's Champions League reform, leading the overview of the sporting competition format and its commercial package. More details on this work, can be read here.
LTT Sports?is thrilled to welcome?Yannick Avognon ?as our summer intern. Currently residing in Geneva, he is pursuing a degree at the?Geneva Business School ?in International Management, focusing on acquiring the vital skills and knowledge necessary to excel in his chosen field.
That brings us to the end of this week’s newsletter. We hope you found eye-opening insights from our content this week. Each week, we will be curating exclusive content for you from the club management ecosystem. So, stay tuned for more and don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter?here !
LTT Sports is an advisory firm focused on connecting football strategy and operations based on experience, analysis and a strong network. At LTT Sports, we have created a set of services for football organisations, providing transversal solutions at any level of the professional football pyramid – to boost performance off the pitch, directly impacting on-pitch results.
*** Disclaimer: LTT Sports is an independent think tank aimed to be a platform of discussion amongst football stakeholders. The answers received for our interviews are personal views of the interviewee and/ or the organisation he or she may represent and strictly do not represent our views on the subject matter.
Contributors to this week's newsletter:?Olivier Jarosz ,? Dora Ouerghi , Konstantin Kornakov , Adam Metelski
Editor: Ajay Abraham