The Football Association is aiming to see 90% of schools providing girls with equal access to football at key stages two and three by 2028, as part of a new four-year strategy to grow women’s and girls’ football.
The FA is also targeting winning another major tournament within the next four years, in the wake of the England team’s success at Euro 2022 and reaching the 2023 World Cup final. The Lionesses will seek to defend their European title in Switzerland next summer, before hoping to win a first world title in 2027.
The FA’s new strategy for the period between 2024 and 2028, named Reaching Higher, also includes plans to enhance education and female health and wellbeing support, embed national safeguarding policies and to develop more women referees and women in coaching. Additionally, among its four key priorities is a pledge to protect the “uniqueness of the women’s game”, with the FA vowing to ensure: “At least 50% of people with an interest in football understand the unique values of the women’s game.”
Equalising access to football for girls at schools is a major target for the entire sport. According to FA figures released in September, the proportion of schools offering girls equal access to football in physical education has climbed considerably since 2020, such that 85% of primary schools are affording girls equality of football access in PE lessons, but things have not changed as quickly as had been hoped at secondary school level. Half of secondary schools still do not currently offer girls the same football opportunities as boys.
The strategy launch on Thursday follows the governing body’s previous Inspiring Positive Change strategy, which oversaw a 56% rise in the number of women and girls participating in football in England, according to the FA’s latest figures, between 2020 and 2024.
The FA’s outgoing director of women’s football, Baroness Sue Campbell, is retiring in November and will be succeeded by Sue Day. Campbell said in a statement: “There’s no question that in the last four years we have made significant and tangible progress across every aspect of women’s and girls’ football, but there is no room for complacency – we must strive to reach higher.
“Although diversity within the women’s game is improving, we must double our efforts to ensure every girl and woman feels they are welcome within the football family whether as players, coaches, officials or leaders. We can be proud of what has been achieved to date, but now is the time to refocus our priorities so we can unlock the true potential of women’s and girls’ football.”
The FA’s new women’s strategy was officially launched within a day of Uefa releasing its own new women’s football strategy, named Unstoppable, which pledged to invest a billion Euros in the women’s game over the next six years, with a target of seeing six fully professional women’s leagues operating in Europe by 2030 and 5,000 fully professional players across the continent.
