Imagine if a third of girls weren’t given the opportunity to do something they love – well there’s no need to imagine. Yes, young girls are wanting access to football, but the resources aren’t there to enable it. The stigma of female football is slowly changing but we dive into the details and what the industry is doing to change this.
The Let Girls Play Campaign was set up by The Football Association (The FA) last year and they have been working to give every girl equal access to football by 2024. The campaign backed by Barclays is all about changing the narrative for girls’ football and encouraging girls to play at school, local clubs and at home.
Lisa Stokes has been working with the FA to inspire young girls, not just to play football but to learn the life skills that the sport provides. Lisa has done so much to aid this campaign, from creating an inspiration board, taking young girls to watch the Lionesses, running football in PE and most importantly creating an atmosphere for girls to feel comfortable playing the sport.
Lisa has been an inspiration to so many girls across the midlands and for all her work she was awarded the ‘Let Girls Play’ award, which to her came as a surprise but to those around her, it was well deserved.
‘I say to my girls, I want you to turn up and play if you come off that pitch saying I love that I can’t wait to come back that’s good enough for me, it’s all about enjoying the beautiful game.’
Lisa Stokes
With such a high percentage of girls wanting access to football and off the back of the Lionesses’ win at the Euros – now is the time to change. The FA are encouraging everyone to listen and learn about the current challenge, and use their voice to make a difference, eliminating stereotypes.
The initiative has been supported by Barclays and is the biggest brand investing in UK Women’s Sport. The new era of women’s sport provides opportunity for brands and is not something to be missed.
Nifty’s founder, Christian Collison, was instrumental in the setting up of the FA WSL in 2010 and has continued to support the growth of women’s football since. If you or your team would like to understand how Nifty can help build your fanbase, coverage and commercial opportunities, get in touch today.
