Next year 2024 womens’ sport is expected to reach a total of £1.02 billion. Football, with the FIFA women’s world cup, is predicted to be the number one revenue generator with a massive £439 million, followed by basketball with a whopping £280 million.

 Women’s sport is now big business, its revenue forecast jumping from just over half a billion pounds (£554.4m) in 2022, £771.8 million last year.

The commercial revenue (sponsorships, partnerships and sale of merchandise) is predicted to make over half a billion pound. is is due to increased popularity of the sport. For example £36.0 million people watched the Women’s football world cup in the UK alone, many of these wore club or national football shirts. The fact the sport is increasing in popularity leads big brands such as Nike and Adidas to see the potential and increase revenue streams.

However it has not always been this popular. Over the last 50 years, some individuals have played critical roles in elevating women’s sport to the level we see today. One of these was Billie Jean King, a successful tennis player who started the open era of tennis. She campaigned for  equal rights on the tour including equal pay with men, being rewarded with substantial media coverage. More recently women like Serena Williams in tennis, Simone Biles in gymnastics and Megan Rapinoe in women’s football have played pivotal roles in raising the profile of women’s sports globally.

This is an exciting moment for women’s sport, increased attention by the public, followed closely by the sponsors and merchandise generators sensing an important business opportunity. But how to tread the narrow path between professionalism and adequate attention, and commercial exploitation by big business, where money trumps all? Can women’s sport, especially football, resist the downward slippery path taken by their male counterparts? Time will tell.