Has England's Euros triumph given women's club football a boost?

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Arsenal women fansImage source, Getty Images

Image caption,

Two of Arsenal's 3 location WSL games this play person been played astatine an Emirates Stadium little than half full

ByEmma Smith

BBC Sport journalist

One of nan changeless refrains passim England's triumphant tally astatine Euro 2025 - and astir women's shot matches successful caller years - has been really important nan occurrence of nan nationalist squad has been for nan maturation of nan game.

And location has surely been growth. The magnitude of media vulnerability and chat of women's shot successful England complete nan past 10 years - since England vanished 3rd astatine nan 2015 World Cup - has grown enormously and has been supercharged since their Euro title successful 2022.

But has their astir caller triumph successful Switzerland had nan aforesaid impact?

What is happening pinch WSL attendances?

Looking astatine nan mean attendances for nan past 4 Women's Super League (WSL) seasons, location was a clear jump pursuing England's Euro 2022 triumph and their tally to nan last of nan 2023 World Cup, but figures fell somewhat during nan past campaign.

This play nan convention has averaged almost 6,500 fans per game. And, while it is important to statement that nan play is very overmuch successful its infancy pinch astir teams having played only six games - and teams including Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham person yet to play astatine their larger, men's stadiums - location has intelligibly not been nan bounce knowledgeable 3 years ago.

There person besides been 2 rounds of WSL fixtures this play staged connected weekends without Premier League games - compared to 1 information astatine this constituent past twelvemonth - which is typically erstwhile nan WSL will target bigger crowds.

Comparing nan first six games of nan play to this shape past year, the Women's Sport Trust, external reported a autumn of 1% successful attendances.

But location are signs of occurrence astatine immoderate clubs.

Everton now play astir of their location games astatine Goodison Park pursuing nan men moving to nan Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Their 2 WSL matches astatine their caller location person drawn crowds of 6,473 and 4,313 - a immense emergence from nan erstwhile 2 seasons, erstwhile they averaged 2,000 astatine Walton Hall Park. Their first crippled astatine nan Hill Dickinson against Manchester United attracted 18,154 fans.

Manchester United, meanwhile, had a crowd of 8,665 for their 0-0 tie pinch Arsenal this play - a nine grounds for a WSL lucifer astatine their Leigh Sports Village home.

There has been a much concerted push successful women's shot for a dedicated instrumentality base, to solidify nan caller occurrence and vulnerability into thing longer term.

"It's a really bully strategy," says Nicky Kemp, editorial head of trading consultancy Creativebrief.

"If we usage nan men's crippled arsenic a blueprint, nan women's crippled will ever lose. It will ever beryllium down nan curve if you comparison transportation fees aliases really galore group are successful nan stadiums.

"A batch of clubs person ne'er had a strategy for filling stadiums, truthful they request to study really to get fans successful to acquisition games.

"It is not ever linear. You person nan post-2022 boost successful subordinate profiles, but nan clubs who are capitalising are those who are up of nan curve, for illustration Arsenal putting nan women's games astatine nan Emirates."

'We are very happy pinch nan fans we have'

Arsenal are a fascinating lawsuit study. Playing each their WSL location games astatine nan 60,000-seater Emirates for nan first clip this season, they person nan largest imperishable location capacity of immoderate English women's side.

In 3 games this run nary of their attendances has surgery nan 40,000 mark, compared to 2 retired of 3 astatine nan commencement of past season.

Yet past twelvemonth they faced Manchester City and Chelsea successful those first 3 games, while they person not hosted 1 of nan different large 4 teams this campaign, and nan nine are not worried astir little crowds arsenic they push much for a returning halfway of supporters alternatively than tens of thousands of day-trippers.

"We are very happy pinch nan fans we have," Arsenal head Renee Slegers told her post-Brighton news convention erstwhile asked by BBC Sport astir nan attendance of 27,336.

"I americium happy and proud of nan fans we person and nan attendances we have."

Arsenal big Chelsea connected 8 November, and by past Friday they had sold 50,000 tickets., external Last play 45,860 fans attended nan aforesaid fixture.

For 2025-26, Arsenal person sold astir 17,000 play memberships for women's games. Compare this to nan capacity of Meadow Park - wherever they played astir of their location games until 2024 - which is 4,500.

Arsenal are focusing connected moving pinch supporters to make nan Emirates consciousness for illustration nan location of nan women's team, now each their convention matches are played there.

The Emirates now has nan women's squad honours connected boards astir nan stadium vessel adjacent to nan men's trophies, while nan nine opportunity much family toilets and babe changing accommodation person been implemented to bespeak nan changing demographic of fans who be nan stadium regularly.

Another rumor for WSL fans is kick-off times.

New timings this play mean galore much games commencement astatine noon, alternatively than nan staggered kick-off times WSL fans were utilized to, while nan divisive 18.45 slot connected a Sunday has been scrapped.

On 5 October 3 matches kicked disconnected astatine 11.55 truthful arsenic not to conflict pinch Sky's Premier League pick, which started astatine 14:00.

With galore inferior shot leagues playing connected Sunday mornings, sports-mad families are having to take betwixt participating and attending, while utilizing nationalist carrier connected a Sunday greeting to get to games tin besides beryllium a challenge.

One positive is that games not picked for broadcast connected BBC aliases Sky are now connected YouTube, pinch nan much-maligned FA Player consigned to nan scrapheap.

"The maturation of YouTube has been really positive," says Kemp. "But I deliberation location is still interest astir not mounting women's shot astatine a definitive clip successful nan schedule, truthful nan thought of nan wide visibility of nan sport... that has yet to beryllium seen connected nan whole."

Visibility attracts sponsorship, and awesome brands proceed to gravitate towards women's football.

The WSL - an independent institution arsenic of August 2024, akin to nan Premier League - is successful nan 2nd play of a three-year £45m title sponsorship woody pinch Barclays, while a caller woody has made free tickets disposable to British Gas customers.

WSL players and clubs will look successful nan Football Manager bid of video games for nan first clip successful nan 2026 type which will beryllium released successful November.

"Biggest brands are choosing to put their money successful women's sport," says Kemp. "And it is incredibly bully worth arsenic it is successful challenger stage. While WSL is an independent entity, they tin do their ain activations."

Other brands person besides made longer commitments to women's football, extracurricular nan awesome tourney buzz.

One of nan astir eye-catching has been City and Netherlands defender Kerstin Casperij becoming nan look of making love app Tinder, alongside her partner Ruth.

On societal media England players are garnering a greater following.

There are now 3 existent England players pinch much than a cardinal followers connected Instagram - Chloe Kelly, Leah Williamson and, astir recently, Alessia Russo. Lauren James (915,000), Lucy Bronze (905,000) and Ella Toone (850,000) are not acold behind.

As for nan league, a WSL spokesperson told BBC Sport that successful September its charismatic channels had 4.1m engagements and 133,000 caller followers - much than double nan engagements they sewage aft Euro 2022.

Manchester City's Kerstin CasperijImage source, Getty Images

Image caption,

Manchester City's Kerstin Casperij has precocious starred successful adverts for making love app Tinder

What astir little down nan pyramid?

The 2nd tier, rebranded WSL2 for nan 2025-26 season, features 12 full-time teams for nan first clip aft recently promoted Ipswich and Nottingham Forest went master complete nan summer.

Professionalism besides intends treating players for illustration professionals. A communal title has been female players having to usage men's boots, which person been linked to nan spate of superior knee ligament injuries successful nan WSL.

In September sportswear giants Nike announced it would supply free boots, external for WSL and WSL2 players, and gloves for keepers - modular believe astatine nan apical level of nan men's game.

Below nan master level, an other promotion spot has been added from nan 3rd tier. Previously, nan winners of nan Women's National League North and South had to play disconnected for a spot successful nan 2nd division; now some champions spell up.

And astatine grassroots level nan crippled seems to beryllium successful bully health.

Before nan Euros, Sport England released figures stating that 835,000 girls regularly play shot - an summation of 165,000 compared to 2017 - and that complete nan past decade almost 100,000 women person taken up nan sport; 215,000 regularly played shot a decade agone compared to 310,000 now.

On 28 July, nan time aft nan final, nan FA said location was a 196% summation connected nan mean number of regular searches for female football-playing opportunities connected nan Find Football instrumentality connected its website.

A schematic that sounds 'Follow our women's shot TikTok' pinch a image of a mobile phone