While football is often considered a "man's game", the document summarizes that it is actually quite popular among women and girls worldwide. Nearly 1.4 million women and girls play football in England, and 26 million play globally. In England, more women and girls play football than any other sport. Arsenal Ladies football club has become very successful, winning 11 of the last 16 league titles, and they were the first non-German or Scandinavian team to win the UEFA Women's Cup. While it was once an amateur team, Arsenal Ladies turned semi-professional in 2002. The Football Association is working to increase opportunities for girls to play organized football.

1. A MAN’S GAME?
If you asked people to name a ‘male sport’, there’s a good chance they’d say ‘football’. ‘After
all,’ they’d argue, ‘it’s played and watched by millions of boys and men across the world, the
famous players are men, the match officials are men, the commentators are all men. In short,
football’s a man’s game. Women just aren’t interested – everybody knows that!’ But is that
really true? How many women actually play football, or go to matches? Let’s find out.
Some surprising statistics
Well, it turns out that football is much more popular with women
than you might think. Nearly 1.4 million women and girls play
football in England. Worldwide, the figure is 26 million. Another
popular stereotype is that women prefer playing sports like
netball. This turns out not to be true, either. More women and
girls play football in England than play any other sport. They
watch football, too. As many as one in six season ticket holders
of football clubs in England are women.
Arsenal Ladies Football Club
Perhaps the greatest role models for women’s football at the moment are Arsenal Ladies
from London. They’re affiliated with the famous Premier League club of the same name, and
they’ve come to dominate the FA Women’s Premier League. They have a record any
Premier League men’s team would envy. They’ve won 11 out of the 16 League titles,
including each of the last six years. They were also the first team from outside Germany and
Scandinavia to win the UEFA Women’s Cup.
Women who have played for Arsenal Ladies include:
 an athletics record-holder
 a player who appeared in the film Bend It Like Beckham
 a sports massage therapist
 a player whose middle name is Abba (Rachel Abba Yankey was named after the
Swedish pop group)
 a singer in the pop group All Saints.
Although it was an amateur team when it was founded in 1987, the players turned semi-
professional in 2002. Many of them have played at international level for England, Wales,
Scotland or Ireland.
The future
So, what next? Despite the impressive
number and achievements of female
footballers, most girls do not play and have
not played football. The Football Association
(FA) is working hard to change this. It
estimates that more than 300,000 girls play
informal ‘kick-around’ football, and many of
these would love the chance to play in a
team. And clubs like Arsenal are playing their
part, too. In partnership with a local university, the Arsenal Ladies Academy is providing
football training and academic study to young female players. In a global movement, from
Uganda to China, girls and women are getting more into football than ever before. The
question is: how long will it be now be before the first men’s Premier League club appoints a
woman player or manager?
© British Council 2009

2. Activity 1
What do you think?
Are there any sports in your country that are mainly played by men?
Can women play these sports too?
Activity 2
Look at the underlined words in these sentences from the text.
1. They’re affiliated with the famous Premier League club of the same name.
2. Although it was an amateur team when it was founded.
3. Clubs like Arsenal are doing their bit too.
4. Girls and women are getting more into football than ever before.
Which ones mean:
a. starting to like ______________
b. connected to ______________
c. not professional – they don’t get paid ______________
d. helping ______________
Activity 3
Find out more
Use the internet to find out more about Arsenal Ladies football team. Is there a
women’s football league in your country? Find out more about it.
Search terms (search in English)
Arsenal Ladies
women’s football in [my country]
© British Council 2009