How well do you know the history of women's football? Here is a brief rundown:
Women's Football gained popularity in the United Kingdom during World War I when women were recruited to take up industry jobs and began playing football to raise money.
The debut match of The Dick, Kerr ladies was on Christmas day, 1917, with a crowd of 10,000 people.
When the men returned from war and men's football started up again, women's football still received a larger audience.
The FA, seeing it as a competition between men and women, when it was not, retaliated by barring women to play on FA grounds on December 5, 1921, forever changing the game of women's football.
The ban on women's football was lifted in 1969, and from that moment forward, women had to rebuild and fight tooth and nail for respect and recognition.
There is an argument that women sports are not as interesting as men, that youth men's teams are better than "elite" women, and that not even women watch women's sports.
However what people fail to recognize is that much like how women's bodies and men's bodies are different, the games they play are different as well. That is why they play in separate leagues.
To compare women's sports to men's sports is to minimize the accomplishments and athletic ability of these women's teams.
Women's teams have also had less encouragement, access to resources and opportunities than men's teams.
Think about this: why do you watch sports? To be entertained right?
Women's sports are entertaining, but are watched less because there is a lack of media coverage. Women's sports need to be visible, advertised, and accessible. Once those standards are met, then it can be fair game
Leigh Moore, former FA digital marketing manager of the Women’s Super League and England women’s team said “Let’s not rely on others to write the headlines for us, let’s write our own headlines.”
In the video essay "The REAL Truth about Women's Football" we dive into the untold truth about women's football and discover the era that altered the trajectory of the sport, the criticism that shapes public perception, and the real, often overlooked, statistics that tell a very different story.
Watch the rest of the video "The REAL Truth about Women's Football" here:
