Please read our previous 4 blogs and future 7 blogs here for Issue 20 of the Lewes FC Fanzine
The Lewes FC Fanzine 12 Blogs at Christmas. – Lewes FC Fanzine Blog (wpcomstaging.com)
The Crouch Fan Led Review, I am glad to say recognises a number of the shortcomings in the women’s game. I have long identified these myself and get slaughtered and accused sometimes either of misogyny.
I wonder how many of these still detractors have the autograph of Emily Pankhurst ion their wall. Women’s football is like the leadership at Lewes FC, prickly about criticism and unable to recognise the best things in life are created by different opinions.
The Fan Led Review can be downloaded here.
Fan-Led Review of Football Governance: securing the game’s future – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The report agrees with what I always say which is that women’s football really need to question whether it wishes to follow the men’s model. Leadership in women’s football is keen to simply do this so I am glad the report questions this.
I will argue below the greatest leap forward for women’s football, as is, is for all league games to be played in the men’s affiliated main stadiums. , I must stress this si my point of view based on the current structure, like the report alludes to I believe it needs serious restructuring,
The report notes-
‘It was also heard that some linked clubs struggle to access the facilities of the men’s club. There is no reason this continues to persist.’
Surely the greatest facility is the club’s main stadium? The report is quite right to stress the parity of access to facilities but stops short of the big ‘taboo.’ Utilising all clubs’ main stadiums.
Interestingly the review drew no main conclusins other than to seemingly kick the can down the road-
‘The future of women’s football should receive its own dedicated review.’
The BBC recently preened to itself, as it has to through it’s contract been forced to rightly promote the woman’s game that it had helped women’s Premiership attendances rise by 200%. It is worth noting that much of this is because the ‘big clubs’ have deigned to allow their women’s team play in the main club stadiums.
A quick breakdown of facts sourced from the internet.
The average home attendances of Chelsea, Man Utd, Man City and Arsenal is approximately 3,750. Not a 200% rise.
But each club has played a single game in their main stadium, Arsenal two and the average attendance is over 40,000.
The simplest conclusion in football is drawn. Women’s football is being held back from a great leap forward by the Premiership clubs, bar I believe Leicester City, not being allowed to play in the club’s main stadiums.
Why such a difference. Anyone local to Lewes where Brighton and Hove Albion are a few miles away can vouch for the allure of travelling all the way up the M23 to the ageing Crawley stadium or tottering down the road to the (hate to say this as a Palace fan) the amazing Amex stadium.
Football is an entertainment, big stadiums provide glamour, better facilities, a feeling of belonging, associations, focal points, a real day out so of course attendances are huge. Any drawbacks. With ten home games a season and less impact from the slower women’s game modern pitches are unaffected by extra use.
So why on earth is the leadership of the women’s clubs, influential journalists, Members of Parliament not DEMANDING, all Women’s Premiership games are not played in clubs main stadiums?
An interesting poll I have seen suggests nearly 70% of football supporters believe women’s football should be receiving considerably more support so it is not as if you are fighting old fashioned values.
If you think about it, it is outrageous. I have read one article in the Guardian where the author suggested it is time for this move to happen. But even then the scribe was almost apologetic in the wish which should have been a demand.
The leadership of women’s football all moan how not enough investment, sponsorship or TV money comes into the game to help it grow expecting it to trickle down the magic money tree and scratch their heads how the last two hugely popular international tournaments but cannot be bothered to follow up with league football. It is the simplest sum in the financial arithmetic of football.
Play all your games in the main stadiums, average attendances will soar and so will investment, sponsorship, and TV money.
As long as we have the ridiculous and perplexing stand-off of the FA, Women’s FA and leadership of women’s football accepting crumbs I guess you get what you deserve. But these people are letting women down and the development of the game for existing players and supporters and youngsters discovering the game whose ambition can only be to play and watch football in second rate stadiums, what a travesty.
The Rights of Fans. 