[Football] Women's Football - Discuss

[hart's shirt]

Plenty of discussion on this a couple of weeks ago:
https://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?371651-Brighton-Women-Final-Home-Game-this-season-to-be-staged-at-the-Amex-on-28th-April

With the Women's World Cup a month or so away, one could reasonably expect there to be more articles on the women's game at the current time.

One hopes that the sponsorship of the WSL league and success in France will lead to sustainability and financial stability within the women's game.

Attendances are still generally very low across the league. Sunday's match between Liverpool and Bristol City attracted only 324 fans.

If TV rights and sponsorship deals are to be made, the number of fans at games has to significantly increase to generate an atmosphere attractive to TV execs.

It doesn't help the credibility of WSL that Yeovil are currently on -3 points after 17 games having gone into administration during the season.

That said, low crowd numbers doesn't appear to be simply an issue for England alone.

"Last season the average crowd was 833, compared to 1,128 in 2016.
In Germany, there has been a similar drop since a league high of 1,185 in the 2013-14 season. After two further seasons with an average above 1,000, it dropped to 849 last season.
In France, hosts of this summer's World Cup, the average attendance at Division 1 Feminine games is 609, down from 708 the previous two seasons.
In Italy, where most teams are amateur, the league says the average attendance among smaller teams tends to be about 200-300 whereas at bigger teams it is about 800."
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/47871431

In terms of sustainability, Albion's women made a loss of £655,696 for the 11 month time period which ended 30th June 2018.
The previous loss was £360,984 for 7th July 2016 - 31 July 2017.
https://twitter.com/RichJLaverty/status/1113744447374802944

With Albion in their first season as a WSL side, one wonders what the 2018-2019 figures will look like.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

I received a letter the other day from the Albion about watching women’s football at the Amex against Arsenal .
Why couldn’t they email and save on paper ?

A letter is far likelier to be read than an email. I notice that Albion were giving away tickets for their women's team last weekend, we got three letters, pretty expensive stuff for a game hardly anyone is interested in. What was our attendance with the free tickets anyone?

 

[Deleted member 18477]

There is so much men's football which is of a higher standard that I wouldn't even have time to watch the women's version. I don't watch women's golf either. I occasionally watch women at Wimbledon and athletics when the Olympics is on.

I did watch the women's World Cup once though when England did quite well.

 

[£1.99]

I've heard the German national women's team have got something about them!

 

[Bwian]

It's better than mens scotch football.

It really isn't.

 

[goldstone]

A letter is far likelier to be read than an email. I notice that Albion were giving away tickets for their women's team last weekend, we got three letters, pretty expensive stuff for a game hardly anyone is interested in. What was our attendance with the free tickets anyone?

I received a letter from Tony the other day offering free tickets for me and a friend to attend an upcoming women's game at the Amex. What a waste of time and money. I wouldn't go if he offered me £20 to go along. The club must be desperate. Why not just admit it was a silly idea and get rid of the women's team?

 

[Hamilton]

I enjoy watching football, so I enjoy watching women’s football. Simple as that really.


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[Knocky's Nose]

It's better than mens scotch football.

As our dear AK would say... "Tennis de Singe"

 

[Hamilton]

I received a letter from Tony the other day offering free tickets for me and a friend to attend an upcoming women's game at the Amex. What a waste of time and money. I wouldn't go if he offered me £20 to go along. The club must be desperate. Why not just admit it was a silly idea and get rid of the women's team?

Er, because women want to play football. And because there is a league. And because if there is a league, then why wouldn’t a team from Brighton want to be successful in that league?

Why is it taking time to take off? I guess it’s for the same reason that there are still more male MPs than female MPs. Or the same reason that women are paid less than men in sports like tennis. Or the same reason that on average women are paid 20% less than men. Or maybe it’s because the FA banned women’s competition until the 1970s.

Then again, I’m sounding desperate, so perhaps we should just pat them all on the arse and send them back to the kitchen?


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[Raleigh Chopper]

I've heard the German national women's team have got something about them!

Ja, Ja, Ja, Ja, Ja, Ja, Ja.
Sepp Blater may have had a very valid point.

 

[Knocky's Nose]

Then again, I’m sounding desperate, so perhaps we should just pat them all on the arse and send them back to the kitchen?

No - just a mild overreaction, that's all.

Women have every right to play football, have their own leagues and take it forward as much as they can, and we all acknowledge that without any question whatsoever. I do, anyway.

However, as a fan of Mens football I prefer the higher quality of the mens game. Sorry to all who gasp in disbelief, but Men are generally stronger and faster than Women, which makes them generally better at physical sports. I know... controversial, huh...

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

If they were playing in my back garden I'd pull the curtains (might have the odd peek).

It's really poor even the top teams.

Women's golf, cricket is ok but at the moment women's football is being forced down our throats, a bit like Scottish football, the vast majority couldn't care less. No different than walking past a game in a park when walking the dog. you stand and watch for a bit but you really couldn't give a fig, bend down scoop up the dog shit and find a bin and go home.

Then there's the studio experts, their winning medals running long the bottom of the screen, giving them credence somehow to comment on a big PL game with 60000 odd supporters baying for blood, em.

 

[Hamilton]

No - just a mild overreaction, that's all.

Women have every right to play football, have their own leagues and take it forward as much as they can, and we all acknowledge that without any question whatsoever. I do, anyway.

However, as a fan of Mens football I prefer the higher quality of the mens game. Sorry to all who gasp in disbelief, but Men are generally stronger and faster than Women, which makes them generally better at physical sports. I know... controversial, huh...

It’s not an overreaction though is it? What’s extraordinary is that anyone should even have to defend the fact that we have a women’s league. On that we’re agreed.

I guess I’m just a fan of the game. I’ll even stop and watch Sunday league every now and then.


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[Harry Wilson's tackle]

If they played in tighter tops and skimpy shorts I'd consider watching.



Until I'm done.

And with that, after a long run of your tittishness, you are now on ignore. Keep taking the tablets

 

[peterward]

It does feel as if it's over promoted and a tad forced out of being politically correct and due to equality.

If women want to play, fair play to them, it's a sport after all and if you enjoy it, good on you......

But the simple fact is, as entertainment, the tandard is pretty rubbish and I personally don't want to watch non league standard footie masquerading as something elite level.

I wonder if you took the England women's team, how far down the men's football pyramid would you get to before it would be evenly matched up? I'm guessing below conference level.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

It’s not an overreaction though is it? What’s extraordinary is that anyone should even have to defend the fact that we have a women’s league. On that we’re agreed.

I guess I’m just a fan of the game. I’ll even stop and watch Sunday league every now and then.


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I posted a negative comment about the England women's team about 15 years ago and got flamed. Rightly so.

You may as well say that all Championship (and below) men's footy is a joke and isn't worthy of comment.

In fact you may as well say that anything that isn't Liverpool and Citeh is shit. Follow the Albion? How pathetic.

See.....?

(Some can't. Won't. You? Can't? )

(I will stop and watch any game in any park. For the full 9-0 minutes )

 

[Knocky's Nose]

I guess I’m just a fan of the game. I’ll even stop and watch Sunday league every now and then.

And that's great. If you love football, you love football - no matter what standard.

I think the thing which is starting to grate on people's nerves is the fact they're wheeling out Women's football 'vets' who have played at what is Conference level (at best) and are asking them to critique Premier League football? It's just a bit forced, and not quite right.

It's like asking Joey Deakin to commentate on the Mens Olympic 100m Final sometimes.... (You have to be a certain age to laugh at that)

 

[Easy 10]

The average attendances in the WSL last season was 953.

Given that fact, I am frankly ASTONISHED at the sheer amount of coverage it gets on TV and in the media in general. I have no objection whatsoever to them playing and having their own Leagues. But its a niche sport, piggybacking off the men's game, and completely unsustainable on a professional level. It cannot stand on its own two feet, and is being financially propped up because there simply is not the interest or appetite for it.

There are lost of positives of course. Inclusiveness, aspiration for girls and women to take the game up, none of that could ever be a bad thing. But in terms of a spectacle - I'm not interested in paying for it, or reading about it, any more than I'd feel like going down my local bowls club on a Sunday and watching a few old duffers play a match against the Arundel Zimmers, or whoever. And I certainly wouldn't expect to see a prominant match report on it on the BBC or Guardian website.

Its basically a PC bandwagon. Play by all means, but only a handful of folk are actually watching, and a fair old slab of those will just be family and friends.

 

[hart's shirt]

Why is it taking time to take off? I guess it’s for the same reason that there are still more male MPs than female MPs. Or the same reason that women are paid less than men in sports like tennis. Or the same reason that on average women are paid 20% less than men. Or maybe it’s because the FA banned women’s competition until the 1970s.

Or maybe there just isn't a general interest in attending games.

 

[nwgull]

It does feel as if it's over promoted and a tad forced out of being politically correct and due to equality.

If women want to play, fair play to them, it's a sport after all and if you enjoy it, good on you......

But the simple fact is, as entertainment, the tandard is pretty rubbish and I personally don't want to watch non league standard footie masquerading as something elite level.

I wonder if you took the England women's team, how far down the men's football pyramid would you get to before it would be evenly matched up? I'm guessing below conference level.

Well below that. Technically, international players aren’t bad; however, they’d be completely out played physically - speed, strength and height advantage - by men at every level down to semi-pro. The Albion’s U16s would probably beat them.