International Day of the Girl: all eyes on the future
Tuesday, October 11, 2022
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UEFA is working hard with host nations to ensure its women's football tournaments leave a legacy for more girls to access and enjoy the game.
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"Legacy" was an oft-repeated word at this summer's UEFA Women's EURO 2022. Players, coaches and administrators were all eager to stress the importance of carrying the momentum generated by the tournament into the future and ensuring more women and girls have the opportunity to enjoy football than ever before.
It is not just the Women's EURO inspiring girls to take up the game. UEFA's other women's football competitions, all staged this year, are driving legacy programmes to create a brighter future for local children.
To celebrate the 2022 International Day of the Girl, we look at how three host national associations in Italy, Czech Republic and Bosnia and Herzegovina are using the benefits of hosting UEFA women's competitions to grow the game at home.
UWCL allure drives interest in Italy
Lyon lifted their eighth UEFA Women's Champions League title in Turin in May, after a captivating final that saw them run out 3-1 winners against Barcelona.
The final, played in front of more than 32,000 fans, brought the curtain down on a record-breaking season for the revamped competition, but for the Italian Football Association (FIGC), it was just one in a series of events running since January that had been helped to attract more girls to the game.
These were so successful that the FIGC increased the number of girls aged 5-15 playing football in the Piemonte region around Turin by 40 per cent, doubling its intended target of 20 per cent. To do so, they used a combination of new and existing programmes alongside high-profile events in the lead-up to the final at Juventus Stadium, engaging 86 schools and 26 grassroots clubs, engaging around 3,500 children in total. Among the highlights were:
UEFA Playmakers
Between April and May, five local clubs ran special sessions for 200 girls aged 5-8, introducing the game using the power of Disney storytelling. At each of the sessions, participants were also able to have their picture taken with the Women's Champions League trophy and meet ambassadors such as Italy coach Milena Bertolini.
The Magical Tournament
A nationwide grassroots competition for 8-12-year-old girls, the Magical Tournament launched at the Juventus Stadium in March and culminated at the FIGC headquarters in Coverciano in late June, with 100 girls taking part.
Pink Village
Held at Turin's Piazza Castello, this special public event allowed young visitors to take part in various physical football challenges, mixed with table football and art and design activities, with ambassador Ilaria Mauro rewarding some of the best participants with prizes. This was followed by a special matchday for 1,000 children, who had the opportunity to attend the final.
Olga Feschenko, FIGC legacy lead
"Due to the pandemic, recent seasons saw a decrease by around 20% of female players under 15 in Italy. This required a strong commitment to recover from the stagnation and give a new boost.
"The UEFA Women’s Champions League Final in Turin was the right occasion to give this boost and UEFA’s support in the UWCLF legacy programme was essential. The guidelines provided and the financial contribution allowed us to develop an excellent programme that reached all of its goals."
Regional focus in the Czech Republic
Hosts of the UEFA Women's Under-19 EURO, the Football Association of the Czech Republic (FAČR) aims to increase the number of registered female players in the country to from 17,500 to 25,000 by 2024.
The association focused its legacy efforts with a pilot scheme in the Moravia–Silesian region, where between February and July 2022 it engaged 7,000 children in football activities after teaming up with 50 local schools and 22 clubs.
By taking trained coaches into schools to provide girls-only sessions, organising fun tournaments and providing a pathway into clubs, the FAČR saw huge success, creating several new girls' teams and improving perceptions of women's football in the region.
The regional FA will continue its drive to attract more girls and is working on a new youth competition structure, while the FAČR has identified further regions to roll out the scheme and get more girls playing around the country.
Jakub Tomek, legacy lead and women's national teams manager
"For us, the legacy project meant moving forward in the growth of participation, which was identified as the biggest obstacle in the development of girls' football in this territorial unit, where the final tournament was held. Promotion of the tournament and close communication with the host cities and the coordinator of the final tournament, drawn directly from the region, helped us achieve this goal.
"Mentoring by UEFA was absolutely key, especially in identifying the needs of clubs and individuals. The experience of learning in an 'unexplored region' was very valuable for the FAČR."
A tale of four cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Staging the Women's Under-17 EURO in May provided the perfect opportunity for the first girls' football project of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
After-school clubs in 30 schools across host cities Mostar, Sarajevo, Široki Brijeg and Zenica helped the Bosnia and Herzegovina Football Federation (BHFF) attract more than 600 girls to play the game, with that number set to reach 800 before 2023.
UEFA funding was directed towards training teachers and providing equipment for the programme, which kicked off in April and will be continued into the new year, with plans to align it with UEFA's successful Football in Schools programme.
In addition, 1,260 schoolgirls were inspired to attend matches across the four venues during the tournament, seeing the stars of tomorrow in action.
Ivana Vlaic, BIH legacy lead
“We knew clubs were having a hard time attracting enough U13 girls and that they didn't have any entry point in schools to get in touch with them.
"With the help of UEFA, we started the UEFA WU17 EURO Legacy programme to create football teams and training sessions in primary schools in the host cities of the EURO. We linked schools to local women's clubs and ended up having 30 school teams. We were thrilled by the positive response and interest from the girls, as well as by the unconditional support received from schools and teachers!”