Last year’s European Championship triggered a women’s soccer boom in Germany. But how sustainable is the upswing and how important is success at the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand?
National player Svenja Huth finds it “sensational what happened off the pitch last year”. The 32-year-old offensive player from VfL Wolfsburg raves about “many broken attendance records”.
Her teammate Lena Oberdorf reports: “You’re recognized more often when you’re out on the streets. We’ve gained a few new followers on social media. And of course you’re also more interesting for TV appearances and sponsorship requests. “
“You just notice a difference,” describes Laura Freigang from Frankfurt. “That’s exactly what we had hoped for from the European Championship.” And Munich resident Sydney Lohmann explains: “It really worked that we took the euphoria with us. We managed to inspire people with the way we played.”
Games in the women’s Bundesliga become an event
The numbers do not allow any other conclusion. Whether in Frankfurt, Cologne, Wolfsburg, Bremen or Nuremberg (in the cup against the “wolves”) – clubs all over the country celebrated attendance records last year. All of them have moved important games to the big men’s stadiums – and celebrated real football festivals there.
“Women’s football has developed enormously in recent years. And the continuous increase in spectators has also created an event character around the games,” explained league boss Tobias Trittel, who is also driving development as coordinator at VfL Wolfsburg.
Bundesliga-attendance record powdered
According to the DFB, exactly 359,404 fans followed the games live in the stadium in the last Bundesliga. This corresponds to an average of 2,723 spectators per game. The popularity has almost exploded compared to the previous year: there were a total of 108,483 and an average of 806 fans. The biggest crowd is Eintracht Frankfurt with 64,093 spectators, followed by Wolfsburg (63,256) and 1. FC Köln (59,306).
The European Championship has shown a stark effect. And it has continued throughout the year. It’s really cool that we achieved that.
But other games also illustrate the change: “In the sold-out DFB Cup final in Cologne or the Champions League final in Eindhoven, there was actually no difference between playing women’s and men’s football,” says Trittel. “It’s just a great experience.”
For the first time, every Bundesliga game was broadcast on TV
An important factor has also been the increased presence on television. Whether in the sports show, the third programs or the gym. Or on pay TV.
“Since 2021, all games in the women’s soccer Bundesliga have been produced – and thus made accessible in the first place,” Trittel looks back. “We had already initiated this development before the European Championships. And so, after the demand had been generated at the European Championships in England, the people could also be taken over the season. They had the opportunity to stay tuned.”
Popp and Co. become role models
DFB captain Alexandra Popp and Co. have also managed to get more and more girls interested in football. According to DFB statistics, more than 97,500 girls up to the age of 16 were on the ball in the past season. That means growth of almost twelve percent compared to the previous year. And the number of female members in the DFB has risen by a whopping 5.6 percent to 1.17 million.
And the association was also able to look forward to a significantly increased interest in the games of the women’s national team. Almost 27,000 fans came to the Dresden stadium for the test against France (2-1) last October. And even if the last test opponents before the World Cup were anything but well-known, the games against Vietnam (2-1) and Zambia (2-3) could still come up with five-digit numbers.
Frankfurt’s Hellmann gives the reminder
So everything is great in German women’s football? Not quite, there are other voices too. First and foremost that of Axel Hellmann. “The entire product is not yet marketable at the moment. You have to be clear: this is a subsidy business,” Frankfurt’s board of directors recently questioned the profitability of the women’s Bundesliga at a DFB event and added: “We have to make it clear that we have a lot to do there. At the moment, women’s football accounts for a 50th of the revenue level of men’s football.”
The entirety of the product is not yet marketable at the moment. You have to be clear: this is a subsidy business.
This assessment is supported by the 2021/2022 season report. Accordingly, the twelve first division clubs wrote an average of 1.5 million euros minus.
In any case, Hellmann spoke of a “lack of tension” in the Bundesliga. There is a “three class society”. After Wolfsburg and Bayern there would be Hoffenheim and Eintracht – and then nothing for a long time. A “concrete” of this state endangers “the attractiveness of the product”.
Wolfsburg and Bavaria as role models for the rest?
However, league boss Trittel counters: “I don’t see it as fatal as Mr. Hellmann. That we are still a long way from women’s football being self-sustaining.” After all, we have just experienced how quickly marketing and demand have developed. The maximum has not yet been reached. First of all, it is about “equal play”, i.e. the further adjustment of the infrastructure and framework conditions in comparison with men. You have to invest in that now.
And he doesn’t judge the sporting competition so critically either. “It’s right, but also important, that Bayern and we lead the way and set a certain benchmark,” emphasizes the VfL women’s football coordinator. “We are role models with our successes and give orientation to other clubs.” He hopes other clubs will follow suit.
Freigang: “Continue to drive development forward”
But what would happen if the EM fairy tale was followed by a World Cup trauma? “We are aware that it can go up quickly, but also down,” says Freigang. “Football is always about success and enthusiasm is mainly generated by success.”
I don’t think the whole ‘boom’ would be over if the German team didn’t make it back to the final.
Wolfsburg’s Jule Brand knows: “It’s getting harder and harder to confirm.” Especially since the World Cup is a size bigger. “But of course we want to have the euphoria we had last summer and get people in Germany excited.” And that’s what Freigang is counting on: “We don’t worry too much about it, but rather see the World Cup as an opportunity to further advance development.”
And that’s where Trittel comes in: “I believe that interest in women’s football is no longer completely dependent on success. We laid the foundations for this last year, which would not break away immediately if the German team didn’t make it back to the final . I’m convinced that the whole ‘boom’ would be over in a moment.”