On 30th August 2020 Olympique Lyonnais defeated Wolfsberg (3-1) to clinch the Women’s Champions League title for the 7th time overall and 5th in a row. Amid the COVID-19 situation, UEFA pushed every boundary to make sure that the postponement and rescheduling of the matches did not affect the course of the tournament. Keeping all the safety precautions in mind, they had to host all the matches in the space of ten nights in Spain.
Olympique Lyonnais players celebrate their win
The UEFA Executive Committee introduced the first-ever European Women’s club competition in the year 2000 under the name of UEFA Women’s Cup. Whereas the male counterparts had such competitions and leagues since 1955. The head start that the males received helped them in establishing a proper infrastructure for many clubs and more people started following the game. With the gradual increase in the number of teams, the viewership increased manifold. People started worshiping football. It was more of an emotion than just a game. Well, that was the case with Men’s football. At that time, women’s football was regarded as ‘unsuitable’; hence, there wasn’t any women’s club.
The first competition for women was held in 2001/02. There were 33 teams; Frankfurt won the first edition of this Championship. By 2008, 53 clubs were involved; UEFA Women’s Cup became the UEFA Women’s Champion league and debut teams started reaching the finals which were considered as a major breakthrough.
In February 2019, the first ever UEFA strategy, Time for Action: UEFA Women’s Football strategy 2019-24 was launched for the development of women’s football. Nadine Kessler, UEFA's head of women's football, said: "This strategy will champion, innovate and accelerate women's football for all so that every women and girl can have a love and affinity for football whether as a player, coach, referee, administrator or fan. Every girl, regardless of talent, deserves a place to play football and the possibility to strive for the impossible without limitation. Women's football is football, and football has a huge ability to impact beyond the field of play and break down cultural and social barriers. Therefore, Time for Action: UEFA Women's Football Strategy 2019–24 has been drawn up to lead a step change for women's football and women in football."
In picture: Nadine Kessler, UEFA's head of women's football
The aim of the strategy is as follows:
Ø Double the number of women in all UEFA bodies
Ø Target of 2.5 million players
Ø Double the reach of Women’s EURO and UEFA Women’s Champion League.
Ø Increase the commercial value by proper telecast and communication media
In picture: Ada Hegerberg lifting the 2017 Women’s Champions League Trophy
As of 2020, there is 50% more investment into women’s football via the UEFA HatTrick Women’s Football Development Programme. Together #WePlayStrong campaign was also launched to gain sponsorship to aid the growth of revenue and public interest.
Now, there are 50% more professional players since 2017; 1.3 Million registered female players in clubs; 40,241 qualified female coaches, and 285 active European international female referees. Total financial investment is 123 Million Euros (10% more than that in 2017). The growth of women’s football has been phenomenal.
This strategy can lead to a paradigm shift in Women’s football. I strongly believe that the issues such as the gender pay gap and prize money disparity will eventually vanish with more support and participation.
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