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Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium has seen less than half its capacity filled for two of their three WSL home games this season.
A recurring theme throughout England’s successful Euro 2025 campaign – and women’s football in general in recent years – is the significant impact of the national team’s achievements on the sport’s growth.
Undeniably, there has been expansion. Media coverage and discussions surrounding women’s football in England have surged dramatically in the past decade, particularly since England’s third-place finish at the 2015 World Cup, and have been further amplified since their Euro title in 2022.
However, has their recent triumph in Switzerland yielded the same level of impact?
An analysis of average attendances over the past four Women’s Super League (WSL) seasons reveals a clear upswing following England’s Euro 2022 victory and their journey to the 2023 World Cup final, though figures experienced a slight dip in the most recent campaign.
This season, the league has averaged nearly 6,500 fans per game. While it’s important to acknowledge that the season is still in its early stages, with most teams having played only six games and some, like Manchester City, Manchester United, and Tottenham, yet to host matches at their larger, men’s stadiums, the surge witnessed three years ago has not been replicated.
Furthermore, this season has featured two rounds of WSL fixtures staged on weekends without Premier League games – compared to one round at the same point last year – a period typically targeted by the WSL to attract larger crowds.
Compared to the first six games of last season, the Women’s Sport Trust, external reported a 1% decrease in attendances.
Despite this, there are signs of progress at certain clubs.
Everton now hosts the majority of their home games at Goodison Park, following the men’s team’s relocation to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Their two WSL matches at their new venue have drawn crowds of 6,473 and 4,313 – a significant increase from the previous two seasons, where they averaged 2,000 at Walton Hall Park. Their inaugural game at the Hill Dickinson against Manchester United attracted 18,154 fans.
Manchester United, meanwhile, attracted 8,665 spectators for their 0-0 draw against Arsenal this season – a club record for a WSL match at their Leigh Sports Village home.
There is a growing emphasis within women’s football on cultivating a dedicated fan base, with the aim of solidifying recent successes and exposure into long-term engagement.
“It’s a very sound strategy,” says Nicky Kemp, editorial director of marketing consultancy Creativebrief.
“If the men’s game is used as a benchmark, the women’s game will invariably fall short. It will always lag behind in terms of transfer fees or stadium attendance.
“Many clubs have historically lacked a cohesive strategy for filling stadiums, highlighting the need to educate them on effectively attracting fans to experience games.
“Progress isn’t always linear. While the 2022 boost enhanced player profiles, clubs that are proactively capitalizing on the opportunity, such as Arsenal hosting women’s games at the Emirates, are demonstrating best practices.”
Arsenal presents an intriguing case study. By hosting all WSL home games at the 60,000-seater Emirates for the first time this season, they boast the largest permanent home capacity of any English women’s team.
This campaign, none of their three games have surpassed the 40,000 attendance mark, compared to two out of three at the start of the previous season.
However, it should be noted that last year’s initial three games included matches against Manchester City and Chelsea, while this campaign has yet to feature a game against one of the other big four teams. The club has expressed that they are not concerned by lower crowds, as they are focusing on cultivating a dedicated core of returning supporters rather than attracting large numbers of one-time attendees.
“We are very happy with the fans we have,” Arsenal manager Renee Slegers stated at her post-Brighton news conference, in response to a question from BBC Sport regarding the attendance of 27,336.
“I am happy and proud of the fans we have and the attendances we have.”
Arsenal are scheduled to host Chelsea on 8 November, and by the preceding Friday, they had sold 50,000 tickets., external Last season, 45,860 fans attended the same fixture.
For the 2025-26 season, Arsenal have sold approximately 17,000 season memberships for women’s games. This is in stark contrast to the capacity of Meadow Park – where they played the majority of their home games until 2024 – which is 4,500.
Arsenal are actively working with supporters to establish the Emirates as the true home of the women’s team, now that all their league matches are played there.
The Emirates now features the women’s team’s honours displayed on boards around the stadium bowl, alongside the men’s trophies. Additionally, the club has stated that more family toilets and baby changing facilities have been added to better reflect the changing demographics of fans who regularly attend the stadium.
Another challenge for WSL fans revolves around kick-off times.
New scheduling this season has resulted in more games starting at noon, rather than the staggered kick-off times WSL fans were previously accustomed to, while the divisive 18:45 slot on Sundays has been eliminated.
On 5 October, three matches kicked off at 11:55 to avoid clashing with Sky’s Premier League broadcast, which commenced at 14:00.
With many junior football leagues taking place on Sunday mornings, sports-loving families are faced with the decision of either participating or attending games, while utilizing public transport on a Sunday morning to reach games can also present difficulties.
On a positive note, games not selected for broadcast on BBC or Sky are now available on YouTube, with the widely criticized FA Player having been discontinued.
“The growth of YouTube has been very beneficial,” says Kemp. “However, there are still concerns regarding the lack of a consistent schedule for women’s football, which impacts the overall visibility of the sport… a factor that remains to be seen in its entirety.”
Visibility attracts sponsorship, and major brands continue to be drawn to women’s football.
The WSL – an independent company since August 2024, similar to the Premier League – is in the second season of a three-year £45m title sponsorship deal with Barclays, while a new agreement provides free tickets to British Gas customers.
WSL players and clubs will be featured in the Football Manager series of video games for the first time in the 2026 version, set to be released in November.
“Major brands are increasingly choosing to invest in women’s sport,” says Kemp. “This represents exceptionally good value, given its challenger status. As the WSL is an independent entity, they have the autonomy to implement their own activations.”
Other brands have also made long-term commitments to women’s football, extending beyond the major tournament cycle.
One of the most notable examples is City and Netherlands defender Kerstin Casperij becoming the face of dating app Tinder, alongside her partner Ruth.
On social media, England players are building larger followings.
There are now three current England players with over a million followers on Instagram – Chloe Kelly, Leah Williamson, and, most recently, Alessia Russo. Lauren James (915,000), Lucy Bronze (905,000), and Ella Toone (850,000) are also approaching this milestone.
Regarding the league, a WSL spokesperson told BBC Sport that in September, its official channels had 4.1m engagements and 133,000 new followers – more than double the engagements they received after Euro 2022.
Manchester City’s Kerstin Casperij has recently starred in adverts for dating app Tinder
The second tier, rebranded WSL2 for the 2025-26 season, features 12 full-time teams for the first time after newly promoted Ipswich and Nottingham Forest turned professional over the summer.
Professionalism also entails treating players as professionals. A common complaint has been female players having to wear men’s boots, which have been linked to the spate of serious knee ligament injuries in the WSL.
In September, sportswear giant Nike announced they would provide free boots, external for WSL and WSL2 players, as well as gloves for keepers – standard practice at the top level of the men’s game.
Below the professional level, an additional promotion place has been added from the third tier. Previously, the winners of the Women’s National League North and South had to compete in a play-off for a place in the second division; now both champions will be promoted.
At grassroots level, the sport appears to be thriving.
Prior to the Euros, Sport England released data indicating that 835,000 girls regularly play football – an increase of 165,000 compared to 2017 – and that nearly 100,000 women have taken up the sport over the past decade; 215,000 regularly played football a decade ago, compared to 310,000 now.
On 28 July, the day following the final, the FA reported a 196% increase in the average number of daily searches for female football-playing opportunities using the Find Football tool on its website.
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