New £30 million fund to support grassroots women’s football in the UK

The UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport and The Football Association (FA) have announced a £30 million (€35m) fund for grassroots football in England. The Government is providing £25 million (€29.2m) in funding while The FA is contributing £5 million (€5.8m). The fund was inspired by England’s women’s national football team (the Lionesses) reaching the FIFA World Cup final in August. The team lost the final to Spain 1-0. The Lionesses previously won the European Championships in 2022. 

The new fund will deliver approximately 30 new pitches and accompanying facilities to support women’s and girls’ teams across England. The sites will be delivered by the Government, the Premier League and The FA’s Football Foundation. The sites will be specifically designed to prioritize women’s and girls’ teams by providing features like reserved peak-time slots, women and girls only evenings, dedicated female changing rooms, shower facilities and accessible toilets, and more.

The investment is part of the Government’s new sport strategy, which sets out the ambitious objective of getting 2.5 million more adults and one million more children active by 2030. The new funding adds to the Government’s existing investment of more than £400 million (€466.8m) in grassroots sports across the UK.