By OkayGoal 
Unfairly, over the course of several decades, women’s soccer found itself relegated to much smaller sections of sports news and column space in traditional media. Despite the popularity of women’s soccer spiralling to dizzying heights over the course of the 21st century, other factors have also helped it flourish in the modern market.
Today, we’re going to look at how underlying sectors have played an integral role in helping the sport reach a new level of success, and why it has been a collective, collaborative effort. In this equation, the sum of the parts is greater than the individuals, which has helped the sport find a fresh global market of millions.
Parity With The Men’s Game
The comparisons between the men’s and women’s games have been a topic of huge debate over the last couple of decades. It’s important not to get dragged into the more divisive elements of these discussions.
While they are certainly two distinct markets with their own fanbases, there are plenty of similarities, especially within linked submarkets such as video gaming, marketing, and gambling. The power of any market lies in the adjustments it can make, often inspired by changing consumer tastes, preferences, and demands.
Cryptocurrency is becoming a more prominent part of the betting market, and those who bet on sports with crypto have seen many of these changes occur in real time since the beginning of this decade.
Not only has the global market landscape helped people access more information about women’s soccer, but it also means that betting markets are now picking up on consumer demand, whether they are using cryptocurrency and digital assets to gamble or looking for a broader range of betting markets.
Due to the size of the sports betting market, the existence of previously niche markets like women’s soccer has helped to propel it into the conversation and bring a new audience into the picture.
Representation In Media
Back in the early 21st century, women’s soccer did not have the same representation in the media as it does today. Films like Bend It Like Beckham have had a lasting impact on how the women’s game is perceived in the media.
While it was an important chapter, and the film got many things right, it was still set during a time when even the top female pros of the era didn’t earn enough to turn their love of soccer into a full-time job.
Within a couple of decades, the women’s game had significant media representation. In the UK, for instance, in 2023 the World Cup Final peaked at 12 million viewers, eclipsing that year’s men’s Wimbledon final.
Two decades ago, this would not have been possible, as the media did not have such a vested interest in the women’s game, and thankfully, this is one of many elements that have changed for the better.
Gaming & Sponsorships
Another important factor that has contributed enormously to the growth of the women’s game has been the representation in video gaming and sponsorships.
Catarina Macaro’s $10 million decade-long sponsorship with Nike is an unparalleled, enormous sponsorship opportunity that simply would not have existed in the women’s game a generation ago, but there’s a long list of players who have big-money deals in the modern game, such as Mary Earps, Alisha Lehmann, and Sam Kerr, to name a few.
In video gaming, the broader market visibility that has existed since FIFA 16, the first video game to feature female teams, has helped bring the market to tens of millions of video gamers over the last decade. It would be foolish to think that all these factors have not combined to lay the foundations for the women’s game to flourish significantly in the modern era.
Many soccer fans may not have sat down and watched a game of women’s football, but having seen the teams on their favorite video games, representation in film, betting markets, and large media broadcasters showing the games on free-to-air TV, all of these components have combined to ensure that the health of women’s soccer is the best it has ever been.
The Shape Of The Future Market
Moving forward, the health of the women’s game is very promising. Many of the big landmark events, including record viewership, major contracts, and broad representation in video gaming, have only gained momentum since the beginning of this decade.
While it certainly isn’t a niche sport now, it’s fair to say it has broken out of this broader definition over the last decade. As the women’s game continues to reach new heights, broader market visibility must be sustained. It is adaptable to the demands and changes we see in media, in how fans seek out live games, and in the underlying markets associated with them.
All in all, the omens are looking promising, and it feels like the women’s game will become an even larger part of the soccer landscape over the next decade or two.