Government pledge to make UK “top destination for women’s sport investment”

The government has today pledged to make the United Kingdom a “top destination for women’s sport investment”.

Investment minister Poppy Gustafsson, formerly of Darktrace, has launched the Women’s Sport Investment Accelerator scheme to bring together 20 leagues and teams with investors to boost commercial activity in women’s sport.

The participating sports include football, cricket, rugby, tennis, golf and cycling.

Gustafsson said: “The UK is already an elite home of women’s sport, and my goal is to make us the top destination for women’s sport investment.

“The launch of this scheme, a week after our record-breaking International Investment Summit, shows the UK is truly the best place to do business in this fast-growing industry.

“Off the back of the latest figures [from Deloitte] showing the industry could be worth over £1 billion this year, I’m looking forward to speaking to investors and clubs, leagues and teams today about how the Accelerator can drive this growth even further.”

The scheme piloted in 2023-24 and helped leagues secure “game-changing” investment and sponsorship deals.

Recent deals include Barclays renewing its sponsorship of the Women’s Super League for £45m and multi-club owner Michele Kang’s acquisition of the London City Lionesses.

Minister for sport Stephanie Peacock said: “Women’s sport has been growing rapidly in recent years and we are committed to supporting its expansion.”