{
  "id": 18866235,
  "title": "Women’s football doesn’t need to become men’s football to succeed",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/08/womens-football-doesnt-need-to-become-mens-football-to-succeed",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-08T05:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "City AM",
    "slug": "city-am",
    "url": "https://www.cityam.com/womens-football-doesnt-need-to-become-mens-football-to-succeed/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Women's football is experiencing a rapid surge in growth, driven by increased investment, interest, sales, and television exposure. However, the financial support and player care for women's football is not keeping pace with this growth. As players advance in their careers, they take on greater responsibilities and it is not practical for all of them to be full-time athletes. While top clubs have the resources to support their players through personal sponsorships and branding deals, this model is less feasible for players in lower divisions. Many female players have found alternative avenues to support themselves, such as becoming social media influencers and content creators. One such example is Lois Colley, a player from Actonians who has recently launched her own events coffee bar business. Meanwhile, the reporter herself has transitioned from a career in professional football to building businesses outside the sport, receiving training in high-level finance, and supporting her family's investment in a football club. The modern day female footballer has an opportunity to step beyond the traditional roles of coaches and broadcasters, and become owners, investors, founders, executives, and decision-makers. Their firsthand experience of the game makes them uniquely positioned to bring fresh perspectives. Women are natural creators, and they can forge their own ecosystem that benefits them. The challenges faced by men's and women's football should not be seen as roadblocks, but as opportunities. Mary Earps encourages, \"leave the shirt in a better place than it was before\". If the focus is solely on revenue generation, then we are missing out on the bigger picture. The current generation of players have far more resources at their disposal than their predecessors at the same age. While it is crucial to advocate for fair pay, we should not limit our definition of progress to just financial metrics. The true potential lies in creating an ecosystem where women not only play the game, but also build businesses around it, invest in it, own parts of it, and ultimately have a say in its evolution. Women's football doesn't need to mimic men's football to thrive. It has the chance to become something truly exceptional, one that sets new standards and creates an environment that is tailor-made for its female participants. The future of women's football should be envisioned and created in ways that have never been witnessed before. Stephanie McCaffrey, an entrepreneur, women's sport investor, and former USA football player, underscores the importance of expanding our thinking and charting a new course for women's football.",
  "summary": "Women’s football is on a continual gradient of growth. The curve has been getting steeper and steeper each year, each season – more investment, more interest, more sales, more TV airtime. However, the investment into the women’s game and player welfare is growing at a slower rate.But as players get older, they gain more responsibility, [...]",
  "key_points": [
    "Women's football growth driven by investment and exposure.",
    "Players advance, need more than full-time sports careers.",
    "Female athletes diversify support via business, social media."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}