So what do we currently know about Mega events ?
Australia has a long-standing history of hosting major sporting events. The impact of mega sporting events is vast as it creates a positive image for the host nations like during the 2000 Sydney Olympics and the Gold Coast commonwealth games held in 2018. The desire by nations to host mega events is not only rooted in economic development, as seen in the recent success of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, where the financial benefits of co-hosting this tournament has been estimated to be worth $200 million to New Zealand and $460 million to Australia, but also in the legacy of building thriving sporting communities.
Mega events provide a platform for social change. An example of this is the inclusion of women’s water polo in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, which is a testament to the public pressure applied by vocal advocates. Australia is set to host more than 16 mega sporting events in the next decade, each having a significant potential impact on building an inclusive community, provided gender equity is prioritised in planning and policy decisions.
While AusPlay data highlights high participation in grassroots sport by women and girls, other data shows:
– A lack of representation in leadership and governance roles
– Women are not transitioning to high performance coaching and officiating roles noting that there were only 18% of Australian accredited coaches at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. For international officials at both the Tokyo and Rio Olympics, only 30% were women.
– Historic inequalities in opportunity and pay and Lack of media representation of high-performance athletes and women sport. Making up for these historic inequalities in opportunities, pay and representation need a sustained focus when it comes to policies and investment.
So the next decade is crucial for Australian sport and how do we genuinely leverage interest to have a sustainable and positive impact starting with the current FIFA Women’s World Cup?
To narrow the current gender gap in sport participation, it’s essential to broadcast on prime-time free to air channels (including youtube) to spread awareness. Noting that 1 in 5 people across the world watched the 2022 Women’s Euro final between England and Germany confirming an appetite for women’s sport. The international streaming platform DA ZONE widely known as the ‘netflix of sport’, conducted a recent survey where 80% of fans say that the free coverage of the Women’s Champions league on youtube increased their awareness of women players. With English clubs now benefitting from this with increased sponsorship interest
The national broadcast reach for the Matildas game against Ireland was 4.88 million – Media coverage of the FIFA women’s world cup will be decisive in increasing global visibility of women sport. Not just the quantity of coverage but the quality as well – which needs to showcase diversity and the reality of an athlete’s experience.
With clear key messaging, we as an industry need to understand that women and girls may demand a different kind of visibility and educating them on both, on and off the field opportunities is vital. Building authentic connections with athletes to increase a sense of pride and belonging to those playing at the grassroots is of essence.
We need a Coordinated approach to tackle inequities in our systems and policies. Evidence from a global benchmarking exercise showed that countries like the UK, France and Norway have established a national approach for gender and sport across all levels of the Govt. and findings show that this coordinated approach leads to stronger outcomes. The Victorian Government should be recognized for establishing the first Office of its kind in Australia for women in sport and is supported by the biggest investment by any state government into facilities, participation and leadership opportunities.
Education is key – equity and training resources need to be made available for all including grassroots community clubs and coaches.
This collaboration, with an emphasis on having more male allies on board allows us to ensure that we build better pathways, create safe, accessible facilities and infrastructure, as well as challenge existing stereotypes. It is the way ahead to ensure a gender equitable governance culture including equal pay to hold decision makers accountable.
Industrial action by women also leads to change. Much like the Original Nine in Tennis who drove change through a coordinated action, the strike by the Matildas in 2015 and subsequent action eventually led to the Matildas in 2019 securing an equal 24% split of national team revenue generated with the Socceroos. Most of you would be aware that FIFA still only offers women one quarter as much World Cup prize money compared to men.
With the ever-changing world that we live in and an emerging shift in our society where many of us strive for equality, I like many others forward to continuing our work in driving this change and creating a safe and welcoming environment for women and girls in sport.
Reference:
Australia call out World Cup pay disparity (2023) YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxb6UKX6-Jk (Accessed: 15 August 2023).