After the WC 2003, it was in fact a swedish tv channel that started to show matches from our womens league. They had gotten the rights to them from some other kind of tv-deal. (And this is where the footie association comes in, they are the ones who decide who will get what, so they can indeed have an influence on it) That channel had lost the right to air a game from the english premier league on saturdays, so they thought why not start airing the womens? And especially since they were "hot" in the media after their success. Since then we've had around 6-8 matches aired each season. Plus the qualification matches, not all away games but the home games. And some friendlies.
The channel has a steady crowd that follows the games, and now even our clubs are making money on the matches. Even though they might get a little smaller crowd the day a game is aired. But they still make a profit on it.


Sweden played their first womes national team game in 1973. Don't ask me why I know that It was a great year...


Aren't they the ones who decides everything that has to do with the media? Invite them to training camps, give them "exclusive" interviews with the stars etc. And here also the players can do a lot, stop being so nice! The girl who won the diamond ball in 2000 (our footie award) went onstage and said it out loud, when all the big bosses where there and on live television, that it's fun to finally be on tv.
That was the big shocker that evening for sure but papers did pick up on it, and I think that is when it really started to be a discussion about womens footie here.


I think it would be worth a try!

That is not a nice attitude to have. This is a friendly forum.

This topic is about WEPL, but you talk about international games - are you just an England fan, or do you follow the game at club level also?

And, when did you last go to a WEPL game, and how far did you travel to get there?
If your reply is going to be the same as above, please direct it to another forum.

Go back and look at the history books and then tell me who declared the game unsuitable for women and banned them for grounds , that why it was a shambles.

As for coverage I don't have time to stand around looking in the broadsheets for snippets of the women's game. And as for the last time a women was on the back pages I suggest you get your facts rght it wasn't a skier the girl did skelton two different sports altogether.

As for fair Game I do sub to that , but ' loads of books on women's football ' don't think so , not as many as your hinting at.

And here we can clearly see how did the FA not cut the women out of the picture. Interesting...

1. Im not being rude, its just my opinion.
2. I went to a game about three weeks ago in the Womens Prem League. Total journey was about 25 miles round trip.

As for fair Game I do sub to that , but ' loads of books on women's football ' don't think so , not as many as your hinting at.[/quote]

Have a look at some of these

Kicking Against Tradition: A Career in Women's Football - Wendy Owen (2005) (recent book with interviews from Kelly Smith and Faye Whyte)

Women on the Ball : A Guide to Women's Football - Sue Lopez

One of the Lads: Women Who Follow Football - Anne Coddington

A Game for Rough Girls: The History of Women's Football in Britain - Jean Williams

The Dick Kerr's Ladies - Barbara Jacobs

I Lost My Heart to the Belles: Story of the Doncaster Belles - Pete Davies

Read them all and then you'll see how far the game has come or not (according to some of you).

lvblue I'm sorry to say that and I don't mean to be rude,
but you don't seem to get the idea of this thread
and what is asked here about.

Please re-read the thread. It seems like you don't read everything we post here.

And aren't you going to comment on my previous post here?

Yes I do get it.

Its what are the FA doing to improve the FAWPL.

What I like to do is challenge what people think. If you wrote the stuff I had, I'd probably be replying exactly the same you have. I havent come on here and said do women swop shirts at the end of the game, or who is the fittest player in the game, like other forums. I loath that as much as the next person. I'm not here to be rude. I love the game as much as you.

Remind me what was your previous post I never replied to?

Well if what you just posted is true,
then we're not so different from each other


And this is the post I'd like to hear your comment to:

It is true. Thats why Im here to discuss womens football. Not whos the best looking, or who has the best legs etc.

And as for the FA cutting them from their own website, yes it is a really stupid move. You think it would have had a piece about it in the womens section, but no.

OK - well this thread is about WEPL etc. It's nice to go to international games - I'm going to Blackburn in 3 weeks for my first ever Women's international.
In fact the last game I went to watch was at Blackburn - this time for a men's game when Arsenal played there last Saturday. That was nearly a 200 mile round trip.
If it had not been for illness I would have followed that with an Arsenal ladies' home game the next day - getting on for 500 miles round trip.
My next game will now be The League Cup final at High Wycombe - around 450 miles round trip if I went directly there, but will be picking up other fans.

I am not a long-standing womens' footie fan, but am learning about it and am enjoying it - I hope you appreciate that there are people like me who have been quite happy to be part of a crowd of 100 at Wimbledon for a County Cup game, as well as being part of a much larger crowd at Anfield a few weeks later

I'm not very knowledgeable yet about the Womens' game, but will be getting there.

How do you suggest other people like me are best introduced to Womens' footie then?

You forgot to add our super 3 games trip
Wimbledon v Arsenal Ladies >> Everton v Arsenal Men >> Leeds v Arsenal Ladies in 4 days, Twm!
How many miles did we do then?

The car was very tired after 1600 miles over those 4 days

poor car; that's one long trip, hope you have RAC cover just incase, you do not want to be stuck in the middle of nowhere

Don't worry Smoggie, that's a good car and a footie fan as well - been to many stadiums

What about us? Aren't we "poor"?
We were the ones who were freezing to death during those 3 games in 4 days

But it was totally worth it and I'd do it again

oh sorry...poor A Smith and poor twmcat should wear thermals

I just wish we could drive the the car to the side of the pitch for some of these games and not have to get out