Euros 2022

BREAKING RECORDS

The Women’s Euro 2022, held in England over the summer, broke all spectator records for women’s football. The tournament’s 31 games attracted an aggregate attendance of 574,875, smashing the previous overall tournament record of 240,055 set at the 2017 finals.

A total of 87,192 people packed into Wembley for England's final triumph over Germany, more than doubling the previous record crowd for a UEFA Women's EURO game (43,301 at the 2013 final between Germany and Norway). In addition, more than 217,000 people attended dedicated Fan Parties in the host cities and 19,200 spectators took part in ‘Fan Walks’ to the matches.

It wasn’t just the number of people in stadiums that broke the records either. Globally, more than 365 million people tuned into watching the games. The tournament was shown worldwide via more than 60 broadcasters and additionally via UEFA.tv in selected territories. More than 50 broadcasters covered matches with dedicated onsite production teams – more

The UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 tournament fi nally brought “football home” for England. But as well as providing The FA with its fi rst major tournament win since 1966, it could transform women’s and girls’ football in the country.

Nadine Kessler, UEFA’s chief of women’s football, described Euro 2022 as “groundbreaking”

than double the 2017 edition at almost every stage of the competition.

Leah Williamson, captain of the victorious England team, said the tournament proved transformational for not just women’s football but wider gender equality. “What we’ve seen in the tournament already is that this hasn’t just been a change for women’s football but society in general, it’s about how we’re looked upon,” she said.

Lasting impact

With the Legacy Programme in full swing in England, the tournament will also have an impact for many years to come. The UEFA-supported legacy programme, which will run until 2024, aims to get more girls and women involved in football on a regular basis. It has been set up across the nine host cities by The FA, who have committed to several measures nationally.

Women’s Euro 2022 The Legacy Aims

● To create equal access for girls to play football in schools and clubs.

● To secure 300 new FA-qualified female coaches, and 350 new FA-qualified female referees.

● To establish an inclusive environment for every girl and woman to play.

● To ensure 120,000 more girls play football regularly in schools.

● To inspire 20,000 more women to play football for fun, friendship and fitness and 7,000 more to play competitively for grassroots clubs.

England’s final win over Germany attracted a record audience of 17.5million on BBC

With the legacy programme being rolled out a year ahead of the final tournament, results are already becoming visible, and its impact can be seen across the host cities. According to figures released by UEFA and The FA, there have, so far, been 7,900 girls and women newly registered and playing in clubs, while more than 14,600 have started playing recreationally.

The programme is now on track to get 120,000 more girls playing football in school while the campaign has created an estimated 416,000 “new opportunities” for girls and women to play football.

It isn’t just football either – the public investment in social impact programmes (art and heritage) amounts to £3.1m

Nadine Kessler, UEFA’s chief of women’s football, says: “Euro 2022 has been groundbreaking from start to finish.

“The biggest women’s sports event in Europe will provide an unprecedented opportunity for us to inspire the next generation of players and fans.

“Our host cities, clubs and local authorities have been up to the challenge of providing more opportunities for women and girls than ever before and knowing The FA’s long-term commitment to the women’s game. Through working with host city

SAPCA member Harrod Sport’s goals were used throughout UEFA Women’s EURO’s 2022 - including the Wembley final

stakeholders we have created meaningful and measurable outcomes for how we hope to see the women’s and girls’ game develop. Each host city has a local legacy plan which sets out ambitions across participation, coaching and refereeing up until 2024.”

The FA's director of women's football, Baroness Sue Campbell, added: "People often think legacy happens after something but I'm a great believer that it happens before and you have to prepare for it. The moment a youngster, or an “oldster”, is inspired, they want to be able to go and play so you have to do the groundwork to get that ready. We're grateful for all the support we've had from UEFA - it's been a terrific partnership." ●