When reflecting on 2020/2021, it can be easy to feel defeated by the looming feeling of negligence that may have been sparked by the Covid-19 pandemic. For many of us, dipping in and out of lockdowns has left us feeling deflated and struggling to fall back into our routine again.
Even though it may feel like the world has stopped turning for the last two years, plenty has continued to go on and there have been some huge milestones reached, despite the pandemic. Some of which have been achieved by women in football. Here are some of the biggest achievements that have been reached in the female football world over the last two years…
1. FA’s ‘Gameplan for Growth’ comes to an end
The FA’s three-year strategy for the women’s game came to an end in 2020 and revealed that there was over 3.4million women and girls involved in football participation. It also told us that there was an increasing fanbase for the WSL clubs and the England team and that there was a higher number of qualified female coaches and officials.
Overall, the FA’s strategy seemed to have been effective and got more women involved in the sport.
2. England Women’s head coach wins her first game in charge
In 2021, the head coach of the England Women left his role, leading to the Norwegian coach Hege Riise taking over before Wiegman’s arrival later in the year.
She won her first game in charge with a 6-1 victory over Northern Island.
3. A huge season audience of WSL
In 2021, the WSL were predicted a total season audience of 14.5 million viewers, telling us that women’s football is undeniably growing in popularity.
4. Chelsea F.C. Women won their 11th trophy for the Women’s Super League
After a greatly successful nine-year reign, Emma Hayes has led Chelsea to receive 10 major trophies, making it 11 in total.
5. Ellen White broke England Women’s all-time scoring record
White overtook Kelly Smith as England Women’s all-time leading goalscorer with an astounding 55 goals in her 101 appearances for England.
6. Chelsea Women manager Emma Hayes has been awarded and OBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours
Emma Hayes was given an MBE for her services to football in 2016, and was then bestowed an OBE for the same reason in 2021.
7. Vivianne Miedema is the first WSL player in history to score against every team
The Arsenal and Netherlands forward broke records by scoring 50 goals in 50 games.
By Arabella Gennard Gardner
Comentários