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Is this the tipping point for women’s sport – or a World Cup-sized outlier?
So, let’s rip the band-aid off: the Matildas went down to England 3-1 in their semi-final. But their stellar run at the FIFA Women's World Cup has done something incredible: inspired us, united a country behind a team, and drawn millions of eyes to the game.
So is this the much-hoped tipping point for women’s sport in Australia? Or, is it an Olympics-style outlier, where the nation gets caught up in the excitement and the spectacle, then returns to their regular scheduled programming? We still have one more game to play against Sweden - but what happens after that?
Mumbrella posed these questions to the experts.
It’s hard to imagine that football in Australia could ever be the same again – an entire generation has just been inspired by the spectacular achievements of the Matildas.
Will the goodwill and interest spill over into other women’s sporting leagues, such as the AFLW, which starts on September 1, or the NRLW, which has all 48 games broadcast on Foxtel, as well as certain games on free-to-air with Nine?
Rebecca Sowden is a former New Zealand Football Fern and founded the women’s sport marketing agency, Team Heroine. She is also a founding partner of the campaign, Correct The Internet, which aims to fix factual errors online which erase the achievements of women in sport. An example of this is how the internet will tell you Cristiano Ronaldo has scored the most goals in international football. That achievement actually belongs to women’s footballer, Christine Sinclair.
“This tournament has been unprecedented in terms of viewership, attendance, interest and talkability,” Sowden explains. “And while we will naturally see a drop off in support like we do with pinnacle events such as the Olympics and World Cups, it’s provided a huge leap in propelling all women’s sport further forward having exposed new and casual fans to the quality, power and opportunity that is women’s football and women’s sport more broadly.”
“So while we will see consumption of women’s football / sport drop off post tournament, the shift will not go back to its previous point and remain at higher levels than previously seen before the World Cup.
“The benefit with hosting a home World Cup meant Australians were able to physically experience and feel the product and all the excitement and opportunity around that and it’s safe to say it entered the cultural zeitgeist so even if their fandom drop off post tournament, they will view women’s football and women’s sport differently moving forward.”
This is a great point. While the Matildas is undeniably a tipping point for women’s sport in terms of television ratings, it also seeped into the zeitgeist. This intangible feeling will linger long after the teams head home – as will the memories of the massive crowds.
“The long held argument explaining the minimal spotlight placed on women’s leagues has always been ‘there’s no audience’ – and I think this has now been well and truly debunked,” Eli Pigram notes. “There is an audience.”
Pigram leads the APAC division of Crowd DNA, a cultural insights and strategy consultancy, and will be appearing at the Mumbrella Sports Summit next week, at a roundtable titled, ‘Girls on Fire: How Telling Authentic Female Stories Can Change the Game for Sports Marketers.’
“These sportswomen are aspirational,” Pigram continues, “and not only to young women – their stories are authentic, full of overcoming struggle on the field, and off, and I think audiences of all kinds can connect with that.
“What will also be exciting is that I think the focus on the Women’s World Cup will result in a shift in the kind of dialogue we place around women’s sport.
“We’ll move from focusing on ability – ‘women can sport too!’ – to showcasing genuinely aspirational narratives that are more nuanced and tell the story of the players in their own right, rather than as a comparison to men and male leagues.”
Matildas alumni pose during the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Sydney Harbour Bridge Unity Celebration
Stephanie Rudnick is Head of PR for Angel City Football Club, a National Women’s Soccer League team based in Los Angeles. She agrees the success of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia does indeed mark a turning point for women’s sports in this country, and around the world.
“While it reflects a broader trend of growing fan bases, increased marketing opportunities, and rising investments in women’s sports around the globe, what is critical is that this momentum continues,” she explains. “We cannot get complacent once people pack their bags and head home.”
Rudnick admits this is a huge responsibility.
“I believe that groups like Football Australia and the brands like CommBank and Cadbury that have supported women’s sports for years will only continue to invest, and others will follow. But, continued growth hinges on challenging stereotypes, committing to and expanding media coverage, and nurturing grassroots involvement.
“The Women’s World Cup’s impact signifies a significant shift rather than an outlier, echoing a brighter future for women’s sports.”
Sowden agrees the success of the Women’s World Cup will “absolutely” flow into other women’s sports.
“We see it in the research with every major women’s sport event which rises the popularity of not just its own code but those of others and is best summed up by the saying often associated with women’s sports: ‘a tide that rises all boats’.
“There’s definitely a halo effect with something this special in terms of new and casual fans being more likely to ‘give other women’s codes and athletes a chance’, it will inspire girls — and boys — to become more active in any and all sport, it shows media that women’s sport can and does rate when supported in the right way, so it creates this positive story and virtuous cycle across the whole women’s sport ecosystem.”
Rudnick notes how the kick-off of the AFLW season in a fortnight “could not come at a more perfect time” for the fast-growing league.
“I’m excited to see fans keep their passion for women’s sport, and all sports, and come out for the incredible female athletes in this country – for the AFLW, but for cricket, netball, basketball, rugby and, of course, football.”
Rudnick has lived in Australia for the past two-and-a-half years, and recently hosted a larger group of Angel City Football Club investors, partners and staff from Los Angeles.
“They were blown away by the crowd’s reaction at Stadium Australia when Sam Kerr took the field with 15 minutes left to play,” she recalls.
“What this World Cup has proven, in this country and to the rest of the world, is that Australians show up.
“And brands can see that both in engagement and on their bottom lines.”
Pigram, Rudnick, and Sowden will be speaking at the Mumbrella Sporting Summit.
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