Can't believe there isnt more of an interest on here for the womens world cup

[Geranuimgal]

I've a feeling we will get very far if not win.
Thrashed China 6-1.
Why the lack of interest?

I always think that the media always seems to focus on one or two members of a team especially football and become more than the team and are up their own asses but the rest of the team don't get a look in . I always wondered if the likes of Gary lineker would have actually been as successful if he had been a non team athlete ? Just a thought .

I have two daughters. I absolutely would not want them to look up to footballers.

Whyever not ?
Disciplined, fit, skillful people at the top of their game. Seems quite a positive thing to me.

I don't feel women should automatically be into anything that features other females. However, I do feel it's a bit naive to moan that male footballers get paid so much more when it's quite obvious that the reason is because the game is extremely popular with men.

It's not just that though. Men's football, more specifically the English Premier League have a huge international following. There are huge merchandising opportunities, entire football mad countries, etc. Lots of money pumped in by wealthy investors from other countries (some of which I may add don't even allow women to drive).
It's all about £££, nothing to do with equality. Even Rugby and Tennis while popular, don't have that scale of private investment

In India, while they too, like football it's cricket. In the United States it's basketball and American football.

Not sure what the condition is like for other countries that don't have an overriding 'national' sport that snuffs out all the others.

I feel that so many posts on here are misunderstanding the OP. I didn’t read the OP as saying we should all be watching and taking an interest. But some of the posts on here seem really defensive and aggressive.Is it not possible for something supportive and positive to be said about the fact that women’s top level sport is finally getting attention, and also to be offering ongoing ‘support’ for that in principle? It doesn’t mean you have to watch the football or even enjoy it, but why all the negativity?

Maybe because a lot of people actively dislike football. The hype, football culture, the obsession with watching the game.

That's not suddenly going to translate to positive feelings just because women are doing it.

Don't get me wrong, I agree that women's sport should be supported. But people have already been following and participating in sports they like with role models such as Emma Raducanu (tennis), Rebecca Adlington (swimming).

And they will continue to do so. They just don't need to add football to the list despite the media hype.

Also a lot of high profile football is funded by investors from the Gulf states, they are now moving to try and make their domestic league a big deal. But football is big thanks to private investment.

Can't see them investing in women's sports ....

Tbf, I'm not a massive fan of footy myself usually but I'll watch it if we're in with a chance because then it becomes interesting to me. But I'm not one to froth about make footballers making more because men love football.

Similarly, I'm not bothered about the top makeup and beauty influencer being female.

(God this is skirting proper stereotypes with footy and makeup). 😂

The thing is, the OP 's point is about the fact there isn't more interest on MN.

There is (was already) an ongoing thread on MN. What would be the point in starting another one, if you want to discuss it on a MN thread?

I am watching all the England games, and I am picking up the short highlights of other group games, and daily updates both on the TV and on social media.
I don't particularly feel the need to discuss them on MN, but that doesn't mean I'm not watching / not interested. If I want to say "Did you see that fantastic goal / match / controversial decision to somebody, I would say it to any one of the many people I know in real life who are also watching what they can of it (with the timings not being great for those at work).

I can’t stand football as a game, I don’t like the ethos and behaviour of the athletes or fans.

I do have two very sporty kids. DS plays county rugby, DD currently trialling for county netball, both compete at county for both athletics and swimming. DD recently made nationals for swimming. We are following the netball World Cup - which was on BBC 2 this afternoon and for me, as a sport, it’s far more empowering for women. It’s simply not acceptable at netball matches to jeer at the opposition (or your team mate) for making a mistake, if a parent shouted at a ref you’d be asked to leave the club. It’s positive feedback only. Plus a much faster, exciting, more skilful game so I’d much prefer to watch that than football.

Must admit I do like watching boxing even though I'm a bit sickened by the brain damage it causes in the mong term. But I've never really watched women's boxing, only women's mma.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/netball/66241085

Are you watching this as well then OP, or is it not ‘real’ sport unless it’s football? 🙄

Totally off topic but I grew up near Llyn Tegid 😀

I really resent this culture of being told what to like. When did this start ?. I have always followed particular athletes men & women alike. But I dislike football you only have to look at the history of fans and players behaviour especially abroad to see why some people do not like it I don't like basketball either . Noone should take it personally we all just have different interests. But as pp have said you don't just suddenly like football just because women are playing it . In my case I am fed up with fake hype And as for this thread being aggressive that is not the case at all.

This is my issue to. I'm at work in the day and would really like to be able to watch a round up of the day's action in the evening after work.

I'm very surprised neither the BBC or ITV have offered this, not even just as a iPlayer or ITVX option.

I understand there is a highlights programmes on BBC3

In Australia, where I live, the Women's FIFA World Cup is getting a lot of media attention and prime-time TV screening slots. In a sports-mad nation, this is huge for women's sport. Women's football in this and other codes is becoming quite popular and mainstream. The attendance numbers at FIFA games have broken records. This isn't just due to promotion, but because they are actually extremely well-skilled and great to watch. They don't get anywhere near equal pay, though - this is the real fight.

I'm more of a baseball kind of gal.

I agree with you. I thought this would be a positive thread. As I said, I live in Australia, and I've nothing but excitement and pleasure from both women and men about the FIFA World Cup. My DD even went to a game and my DS and I text each other through each game. So to read this moaning and general lack of interest was an eye-opener. It's a little gloomy for women's sport when your own country can't be arsed to support you.

Op I think you'd get a more balanced response from a thread that directly asks those who like football why they're not watching the women's WC. Starting a thread like this is always going to attract the vast majority of women who just don't like football full stop. I suppose the men's sport is so closely linked to toxic masculinity it has a pretty bad press for many women.

As someone else has said, it was never really meant for us and it's only in recent years that its popularity grew among more women. I grew up in the 80s amd 90s. I do remember quite clearly being told by boys in the playground that I couldn't play because girls were rubbish at football. My dad is a particularly vocal supporter of equality (comes with the territory of having 3 daughters and no sons). With his words ringing in my ears I demanded a place in that playground football match and changed quite a few opinions as a result, scoring several goals. Italia 90 was a fantastic World Cup and me and my male and female friends went football crazy. I could always be found kicking a ball around. I went to my first local football match with my Dad (4th division back then) and was hooked. Played for a Sunday leagues team and at University. It was actually a time that enjoyed quite a significant female interest. Gazza was the first English footballer to be seen openly crying on a football pitch. Lineker looked after him. It was ok for men to show their emotions. Football was suddenly for everyone.

Since then, it's almost as if a stigma developed and girls actively detested it again. It became about money, egos, cheating and the kind of things most women find distasteful.

I'm delighted to see the popularity of women's football increasing. It's inspirational, and for those girls who like sport it tells them that there's an avenue for them to shine. Of course it's different to the men's game and of course if you pitched them against one another there would be an obvious difference in pace and strength, just as it is in tennis. But like for like, if you enjoy sport and you enjoy football there is absolutely no reason not to get behind the lionesses and encourage both your daughters and your sons to watch it. I don't want my football mad son to be one of those boys in the playground telling a girl she can't play football because girls are rubbish at football. And I don't want my daughter to believe anyone who tells her that girls can't have the same dreams, hopes and ambitions as her male peers.

@MuddlingMackem

BBC3 has daily highlights of the footie WC, 7pm, I think, and on iplayer (I watched 2 episodes last night). DH has been watching the netball somewhere, wherever that's broadcast. The netball spectator count is low, though, boohoo.

The Wellington game footie WC, ? South Africa and another, the stadium was well under capacity for fans. The enthusiasm isn't everywhere.

I can't speak for Europeans. I played league 'soccer' for 3 years in the 1970s as a child, in a "not football loving" country. Most of the girls in the league were not unathletically declined (which I am). Women who played for UK side(s?) in 1st women's WC in early 1970s have been commentating on present games.

The Wellington game footie WC, ? South Africa and another, the stadium was well under capacity for fans. The enthusiasm isn't everywhere.

tbf, the whole population of NZ is only about 5 million, so if you look at that, proportionately against the UK population of something like 67million and crowds for games at the Euros, I think it not unreasonable that every game doesn't fill every stadium.

Agree with this. I dislike football anyway so watching it played by women who are slower and not as skillful is my idea of Hell. The one clip I saw the other day, the stadium was clearly mostly filled by school children who presumably had been given free tickets to fill seats? Sick of the BBC trying to pretend that it must has equal billing with the professional mens' game. Which is also crap.

During the Euros Apart from the England games and later stages , a large percentage of tickets were given away to schools etc and a large amount despite being 'sell outs' were not if you look at photos from the grounds.

No interest in women’s football. I’m a mens team PL season ticket holder (and before that Championship) but just can’t get into it, sorry!

As I said I am watching and supporting our Lionesses and fully support women's participation in all sports. I used to play rugby and my dd played football for the first ever football team at her all girls school and I drove them around to play other schools.
However, if you seriously believe that your daughter's team would beat a men's semi pro team, let's say Gateshead or Chorley as an example then you really know nothing about football. In a competitive 90 minute game it would probably end up about 20 -0.