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Opinion
When news broke of the excellent ticket sales across the past six months for the upcoming Women’s World Cup on Australian and New Zealand shores, it was simple to celebrate in anticipation of what will be a stunning event.
However, for people involved with and invested in the Australian game, the bigger question of just how such a global event can be parlayed into meaningful change on a domestic level remains a key one.
In essence, how do the powers at be use the millions of local eye-balls, the heightened attention of young players and the obvious financial benefits of such an event to make real and tangible change in Australia; change that lasts and provides more for the millions of players yet to even lace up a boot?
Hundreds of thousands will venture down under for the World Cup. In excess of 500,000 tickets have already been sold, with domestic sales strong and fans in the USA, England, China, Germany and Canada leading the charge.
Even at this early stage of ticket sales and with significant future windows yet to open, the numbers suggest an average crowd of around 8,000 people across 64 matches as a minimum.
In all likelihood, that number should triple, with a vast number of tickets yet to be snapped up by Aussies like you and me, as well as international tourists certain to attend matches during their visit aside from those involving the country they support.
The early ticket metrics suggest that FIFA’s goal of seeing 1.5 million sold for the tournament may well have been a little on the conservative side.
Knowing Australia, Australian people and the way they flocked to games during the 2015 Asian Cup in which the Socceroos triumphed, we should best prepare ourselves for one of the most popularly attended events in the history of modern Australia, let alone in Australian sport.
Whatever the final ticket sales and attendance figures, Football Australia stands to benefit significantly from a financial perspective. Corporate Australia will be, predictably, on hand to cash in where possible, snaffling its share of the pie and politicians began circling and jockeying in an attempt to be seen as keen advocates of football some months ago, despite never having been so previously.
The Seven Network has taken the plunge and invested in the World Cup with the view that the domestic eyeballs keen to view it will have other broadcasters in envy. Media more broadly have already begun trickling out football articles about female Australian players that they would not be writing if the A-League Women was the only football content on the horizon in 2023.
Does the media promote women’s football in Australia enough? (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
That all creates a rather challenging situation for Football Australia, with every proverbial man and his dog keen to cash in on the tournament, yet the vast majority certain to walk away with a fistful of bucks and/or clicks when it is over and with no real intention of remaining involved in football or doing anything to promote it in the future.
I would be stunned if others did not see the potential disaster of such a situation and the importance for Australia, and New Zealand for that matter, to ensure that something positive and measurable emanates from the global attention of a World Cup.
Football Australia’s messaging since the awarding of the tournament has been focussed around the notion of legacy.
Legacy ’23 ambassadors have been appointment, with a few questionable ‘pollies’ wrangling their way into the mix, and the five key pillars of participation, facilities, leadership and development, tourism and international engagement, and high performance will be used to guide the minds charged with making something sustainable from a four-week sporting event.
Whilst FA should be applauded for the words and sentiment offered in the lead up, what matters most is that in 2024, young girls are not forced to share changing room facilities with male players.
Moreover, no female player should be required to prepare for a match in a questionable demountable, unfit for the purpose, nor be seen changing into football boots in the car park of a sporting facility devoid of the appropriate amenities.
One of the greatest potential legacies for female players in Australia would be the opportunity to play on pitches of a standard to rival those enjoyed by many junior male players.
For too long, women’s competitions have been seen as secondary, often dumped to the Sunday morning timeslot and played on pitches of questionable quality.
In addition, financial investment in women’s football that correlates to the rise in participation numbers is long overdue, as is a concerted effort to upskill coaches and attract a better standard of them, in order to guide the hundreds of thousands of young women who often miss out on quality instruction.
The numbers suggest that the 2023 World Cup will be a roaring success on the pitch, yet in the long term, that will mean very, very little.
What will mean something, is real change. Hopefully another million tickets are sold and the majority of the financial windfall is used to promote parity between the sexes in Australian football.