The Unprecedented Investment and Sponsoring Achievements of This Year’s Female World Cup, I Couldn’t Help but Wonder: Why Did It Take So Long?
With This Bittersweet Feeling of Pride Over the Female Teams’ Accomplishments and Discomfort With Brands Still Taking Them for Granted, I’d Like to Expand the Discussion on How Brands Are Already Using the Women’s World Cup to Their Advantage and Where They’re Still Missing.
The Context of the Women’s World Cup 2023
According to FIFA, as of August 4th, 1.7 million game tickets had been sold in 2023 — surpassing the initial target of 1.3 million. Ws Data Furthermore, 42,137 attended New Zealand’s opener, representing the largest crowd in the nation’s soccer history — for both men’s and women’s matches.
Highlights also emerge when it comes to television and online viewership, and even in the sale of jerseys of certain teams. A prime example is the Matildas, the host team of the championship.
Beyond these records, another context catches my attention: this marks the final World Cup appearance for some of the sport’s finest players. For instance, the Brazilian icon Marta, the all-time leading scorer in World Cups among both men and women, and the American stalwart Megan Rapinoe.
Strides Towards Equality and Overlooked Opportunities
Adidas, Coca-Cola, Hyundai, and McDonald’s, for instance, are partners and sponsors of the tournament, among other giants. The majority of significant market players that have supported DM Databases women’s soccer are indeed doing a great job. This effort will undoubtedly yield results for the long-anticipated and eagerly awaited gender parity in soccer.