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To fully understand the importance of current events, you have to know the journey that took place to get to that point in the first place.
The first international match was played in 1881 between England and Scotland, with the latter winning 2-0.
During the First World War, women became involved in the factories while the men were on the front. They took up football as a pastime and grew in popularity.
In 1921, the Football Association (FA) banned women's teams from playing on association members' pitches, stating that the game was "unsuitable for females". This ban had a significant impact on women's facilities and funding opportunities.
It was not until the Women’s Football Association was formed in 1969 that the change happened, with the ban lifted in 1971.
The 1971 FIEFF World Cup final in Mexico saw a record attendance for a women's football game of 110,000 for Mexico vs Denmark.
1998 saw the first woman to manage the England women’s team, setting the way for Serena Wiegman to follow and win trophies.
The previous record held at the Azteca stadium in Mexico in 1971 was broken in 1999, where 90,185 saw the USA lift the first of many World Cup trophies against China on home soil.
The subsequent significant jump in development happened in 2011 when the Women’s Super League was founded, now one of the world's most competitive women’s leagues.
2014 saw the first women’s FA Cup Final held at Wembley four years after the WSL became an entirely professional competition seven years after it was founded; some players still paid the bare minimum.
The crowds grew with England v Germany at Wembley in 2019, drawing 77,768 attendees.
More records are to be broken with attendees in the league, with the North London derby between Spurs and Arsenal capturing a crown of 38,262.
Over 82 million worldwide watched the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup final.
All these records and steps have led to 2020 3.4 million women and girls in England playing football
An extra 1,200 full-time equivalent jobs were created and supported by the tournament's total direct, indirect and induced effect to support the Euros.
It can be safe to say that the 2022 Women's Euros in England on massive premier league stadiums was a statement to all those haters.
Alex Scott, an England player, said: “Let's just remember as well, back in 2018, we were begging people [Premier League clubs] to host games in their stadiums for these Euros, and so many said no.”
Before the tournament started, there were record ticket sales of 500,000, double that of the previous set.
They packed out Old Trafford (Manchester United stadium) in England's opening game of the competition. They also played at the Amex, the home of Brighton Hove Albion.
England also at the time, the final between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium drew a record crowd of 87,192, breaking the previous record of 80,203 set at the 2012 Olympic Final. However, this is likely due to COVID-19 restrictions on the men’s Euros in 2021, which limited its capacity.
The viewership for the final in 2017 tripled from 50 million to 365 million people who watched England win their first women’s trophy and the first from both genders since 1966 at the exact stadium location ( different physical stadiums).
The win of England beating Norway 8-0 was the most significant winning margin in a UEFA Women’s Euro final tournament.
No wonder social media went wild for this tournament with all these records being broken. It generated 453.3 million cumulative social interactions.
The tournament generated economic activity of £81 million across its eight host cities.
The history did not just stop on the pitch. Debbie Hewitt MBE was the first FA women's chair in its 157-year history, which was crucial in having women represent women’s sports.
In the WSL 2022/23, the season surpassed 680,000, 172% higher than the 2021/22 season, with the average per game-week nearly tripled the previous record.
I went to two Champions League games at Chelsea a year apart, against Barcelona in the semi-final; one was half-empty, and the second was in 2024. Emma Hayes, last season in charge, was the first time Chelsea Women’s sold out Stamford Bridge.
The 2023/24 also saw Arsenal sell out the Emirates. However, the other teams are still behind the two London clubs; Manchester United did not sell out in the league's final game against Chelsea at Old Trafford.
2024/25 saw the Liverpool derby being played in Anfield, while in the championship, Newcastle played at St James Park. Crystal Palace played their second game in the WSL at Selhurst against Chelsea, though the 7-0 goal deficit put a sour note on the success.
The future generation of female footballers is looking bright. FA captured that in formal and casual football participation and showed a 140% increase in participation levels in the season after the tournament. Also, women over 16 had an increase of 53%. This amounted to 2.3 million more women and girls than the previous season post-tournament. Seeing these women playing football for careers and jobs shows girls around the country that they can dream and believe.
There needs to be more to keep the continuation of the game.
More financial support is needed from the grassroots and development sides.
More investment in research is needed, as only 8% of sports research is about women, especially in the prevention of ACL injuries, which has plagued the women's game and sidelined some of the greatest assets and players in women’s football from Beth Mead, Leah Williamson and Sam Kerr to name a few.
UEFA said: “The main source of information about a ’so-called ACL pandemic in women’s football’ predominantly stems from media news sources and not from data. We are keen to inform the public about the available data and make news articles data-driven.”
Better playing conditions, high technology from goal-line technology and VAR; it's a professional league, so it should be treated that way. For example, Chelsea vs Spurs on the 20TH of October showed the importance of goal-line technology to ensure accurate decisions are made to make the game fair.
As the ball was sailing high towards the goal, Hampton had to jump to palm the ball down onto the goalline but the assistant referee raised his flag and a goal was awarded - much to the dismay of Hampton, who picked up a yellow card for her protests.
however without such technology the officials cannot be certain it went over the line due to the fact the linesman cannot have a precise view from where they were standing. This is where technology should come into the women’s game to help the game develop and create a fair playing field.
Sonia Bompaster Chelsea manager said: "From where I was watching the game it's difficult to say if ball was in or out. I just feel like if the technology is in the men's game why don't we have the same?
"If we want to look professional we just have to have the same thing as the men's game."
Tottenham boss Robert Vilahamn: "VAR, goalline technology - if we can get everything right and don't lose momentum of the game bring it, but make sure we don't disrupt games too much.
"Goalline technology is a good thing, a quick decision so why not."
Former England midfielder Fara William, speaking on the Women's Football Show, said she "would welcome" goalline technology, adding: "For moment's like this it's important we have it."
playing at larger stadiums not occasionally playing at the MEN'S stadium but it means both teams' stadiums, with the WSL and Premier league working together so this can happen.
Fifpro said: “Our objective is to work with clubs in women’s football to bring together evidence-based conclusions about how to avoid ACL injuries. Of course, we recognize that it will not be possible to eradicate them altogether. We also want to contribute towards reaching gender parity in football research: currently only 8% of all sports science research is focused on women. Our project will last three years, and we will make any relevant findings publicly available during that period.”
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