England women and girls’ football teams double in 7 years

There are now twice as many registered female football teams in England compared to seven years ago.

The most significant surge occurred during the 2022-23 season, following the Lionesses’ victory in Euro 2022, with nearly 1,500 new teams joining the ranks.

Increased visibility of women’s football has played a crucial role – particularly highlighted by the massive audience of 14.4 million viewers during the Women’s World Cup final last year.

The Football Association (FA) has pledged to make the game more accessible, acknowledging the importance of sustaining this momentum.

England player Ella Toone told the BBC: “Growing up, there wasn’t women’s football on the telly – so I didn’t have a female role model to look up to.

“Now you see the Lionesses are all over the telly – our WSL [Women’s Super League] games are on the telly as well – and it’s nice now for girls to look up and have female role models.”