The people spoke to drive change in sport, and quickly….

Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Man Utd and Tottenham all attempted to join a breakaway European Super League alongside the likes of AC Milan, Athletico Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus and Real Madrid. Due to unprecedented backlash from supporters and the industry alike, it was a short-lived power move driven purely by greed with total disregard the impact would have on the football pyramid and lower league teams.

Despite Florentino Perez, President of Real Madrid, stating the need to create such a format was curated to ‘save football, due to younger people no longer being interested in football’ – the people spoke, and within 24 hours of the announcement, following mass protests outsides football grounds up and down the country (of which many were young fans), and well respected figures in the industry like Gary Neville and Alan Shearer also championing the fight to stop this blatant money motivated power move -  the likes of Chelsea, Man City and Arsenal were quick on their heels, tails between their legs, to withdraw their commitment to the breakaway league with the air of greed and selfishness still lingering prominently. 

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What does this tell us about the influence the media, fans and the governing bodies have when it comes to driving change in the beautiful game, we all so dearly love?

Well it’s simple, sports, no matter the gender playing them, are created for the fans watching, and for those that love to play their respective discipline. Therefore, these same fans and the industry and governing bodies that oversee these sports, have a right, and more so a duty, to drive the direction and importantly the exposure, these sports platforms and the athletes that have dedicated their entire lives to achieve elite standards, deserve.   

Daniel Wann the leading sports-fan psychologist in North America said, “People like sports because, like the theater, it is a venue for emotional expression. People like sports because they need an escape from real-world troubles. People like sports because it provides a sense of belonging, a connection to a wider world.”

On International Women’s Day, YouGov asked the British public how they would feel about seeing as much women’s sport as men’s live on TV. And the results? The British public is overwhelmingly supportive of equal coverage. Almost seven in ten Britons (69%) support equal media coverage of men’s and women’s sport, with just 15% opposed. Women are slightly more supportive than men, at 72% to 66%.

With almost 70% of sports fans actively wanting to see more Women’s Sports covered, and with the recent demonstration that what fans want in overturning the power play of the European Super League, it’s about time that we the people demand the support of the governing bodies and the TV broadcasters to give us what we want, equal, or at the very least a huge increase, in the coverage of Women’s Sports Media.

We for one at WSM are on a mission to help drive this change. We are the future….

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