Women's football workshop in London

As women's football continues to progress, the impact of the recent FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada on the development of the European women's game was a key item on the agenda at a UEFA workshop in London.

The Women's Football Club and League Development Workshop at Wembley Stadium, hosted by England's Football Association (FA) and held under the auspices of UEFA's Knowledge and Information Sharing Scenario (KISS), also examined how club licensing tools can be used to take women's football forward within Europe's national associations.

Delegates from UEFA, FIFA and national associations, leagues and clubs across Europe – represented by senior women's football officials, as well as competition, player development and marketing specialists – reflected on how women's flagship competitions are developing.

The workshop also looked at how co-operation between national associations and domestic clubs and leagues can be further improved in terms of technical development, match calendars and release periods. Trends in women's football financing and knowledge exchanges across borders between associations, leagues and clubs were also part of the discussions

Views and results from the workshop
"The workshop enabled us to take away key learnings from the FIFA Women's World Cup – we were able to see the great impact that such major tournaments can have in terms of driving development forward at league and club level. The use of a club licensing system has proven key as a tool for development, and many associations already have robust systems in place that manage to raise the quality of the women's game in their flagship competitions.

"The countries represented also voiced the idea of bringing a tiered club licensing system at UEFA level for participation in the UEFA Women's Champions League. This will be brought back to the UEFA Women's Football Committee for further discussion on using such a tool to bring women's football to the next level in UEFA's national associations."
Karen Espelund, UEFA Executive Committee member, chairwoman of the UEFA Women's Football Committee

"We are delighted to host this important UEFA KISS workshop on women's football club and league development. It has provided us with time to reflect and share the experiences from the FIFA Women's World Cup, and how the very positive momentum and increased interest in the women's game can help us drive things forward – from inspiring girls to play, to developing strong leagues which fans want to follow, and how these areas in particular can help our national teams achieve more success."
Martin Glenn, CEO, English Football Association (FA)