Since the Coronavirus pandemic, without question there has been growth in visibility and interest of women playing football professionally.
The 2022 UEFA European Championships further accelerated interest in professional women’s football. However, it has not been without its challenges, which part one of this series touched on.
Having overcome these challenges makes the significance of the legacy of women’s football all that much more important to continue.
Part one mentions that women’s football makes for an incredible interdisciplinary case study. Sport is often used as a tool to address wider issues, including those that women have to face related to their rights, such as education and society’s view of their role within it.
It enables women to become global citizens for audiences where ordinarily their presence was formerly limited and inspiring the next generation of girls.
Digitalisation and its Significance
Digitalisation and digital endorsements catalyse how women can go from being athletes to female role models. In turn, this has become a significant element to increase the social acceptance of women’s engagement in all areas of society.
Modern platforms and social media play a huge role in preserving the legacy of women’s football. Such platforms incrementally detail the significance of the legacy. These platforms give a space to tell and uncover uncomfortable truths, unheard stories and injustices.
The significance of preserving these truths is to ensure that they are not dismissed or forgotten. In such scenarios, a chance is presented to provide an opportunity to demand answers and be properly celebrated.
Delicacy and Significance of Women’s Football Legacy
Embed from Getty ImagesFor good reason, the level of support governing bodies provide the women’s football legacies has come under scrutiny. Digitalisation has allowed unprecedented distribution and reach. Demonstrative significance of the women’s game extends to having leaders such as Maggie Murphy who are imperative to respecting the responsibility to preserve, maintain and further the women’s game.
For a long time, girls have been discouraged to play football, albeit directly or indirectly. Small and simple changes such as darker colour kits to give female athletes one less concern when playing can make a huge difference in a players confidence.
Euro 2022 brought a level of attention to the women’s game that had not been seen for a long time in the UK. England winning the finals made the games that much more special and pivotal.
The international win signifies how far the women’s game has come since 1921. The win illuminates why this delicate legacy cannot be overlooked and instead celebrated, preserved, and protected for future generations.