I was recently at my foundation’s summer camp where educators train children in exercise, nutrition and personality development. I noticed that the guests regularly looked excitedly at their mobile phones. They wanted to know what the score was. That morning, Germany were playing against South Korea and everyone felt something is at stake here.
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand has been exciting. The atmosphere in the stadiums has been excellent, millions in Europe and elsewhere are cheering at unusual times of the day. That would not have happened a few years ago: a group stage match captivating people in Germany. Women’s football has become more attractive because it is better. It can now be enjoyed without saying “yes, but”.
For a long time, women in many countries were forbidden to play football; Germany, for example, lifted the ban only in 1970. They have now significantly reduced the gap resulting from this discrimination. More and more women play football and they do so more vigorously and are therefore better trained, starting as children and young adults. You can see that in the technique, the challenges and the spectacular goals of this World Cup. The one scored by 18-year-old Linda Caicedo against Germany will be remembered for a long time.
Her Colombia team were not the only successful underdogs. Jamaica knocked out Brazil, the Philippines beat the hosts New Zealand, Panama scored three goals against France. All continents were represented in the last 16. Africa had three of those teams. Women’s football has become globally popular.
This development sparks unprecedented competition. The semi-finals did not feature any of the five nations that have already become world or Olympic champions. USA, something of a natural winner for three decades, can no longer rely on its old strengths alone. They won only one of their four matches and were eliminated in the last 16.
Germany also showed too little order and made tactical mistakes. Their elimination at the group stage was like a parallel to the men’s team. USA and Germany, who have won six of the eight Women’s World Cups so far, will have to come up with something new to keep up with the competition.
It comes from the traditional, once all-male football nations of Europe. For them, investing in women’s football is now paying off. For some years now, Arsenal, Barcelona, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Ajax or my club, Bayern Munich, have pushed their women’s teams, backed by their strong brands.
On Sunday Germany will lose their unique selling point of having won the World Cup with both the men’s and the women’s team. One finalist, England, have the physically strongest team of the tournament. The other, Spain, have only qualified for a World Cup for the third time but are already in the final thanks to the country’s typical ball-possession style.
France and the Netherlands can also be counted among the title-capable teams. The Swedes have been in the mix since the early days of international women’s football in the 1980s. This time they beat the world champions USA and Japan.
Europe is a winner of this World Cup and almost all the players from the semi-finalists are employed here. The other winner is Australia. The Matildas play for their fans, who recognise themselves in the team and give it wings. The euphoria has been palpable even from 15,000km away. I experienced this feeling myself in 2006 when Germany hosted the World Cup.
The World Cup is a sporting festival, but also a festival that transports themes. When women play football, it is always about equal opportunities and equality. That is a good thing. In China, Vietnam or Morocco, where women’s rights are or have been limited in comparison with Europe, it is more subliminal. In countries that have freedom of press, it is easier to openly discuss issues such as equal pay and how to balance family life. Those debates take place under more favourable conditions.
Many men who play football are very rich and have distanced themselves from the general public, for example by their decision to play in the Saudi Arabian league. Most female players, on the other hand, are closer to many people with their concerns. This makes it possible to use their examples and discuss matters that concern everyone with them.
“I would be very satisfied if female footballers would be able to concentrate on their sport,” Celia Sasic, who is organising Euro 2024 with me, said in an interview with Die Zeit last week. She was Europe’s female footballer of the year in 2015 but quit the game at 27. She wanted to start a family.
Still, even the best female footballers cannot lose sight of their livelihood during their careers. They take risks when they are young, looking to make their way in the sport, when their contemporaries are pursuing other professional careers. But there is progress. The Germany player Melanie Leupolz had her baby with her in Australia. In doing so, she showed everyone that having a child and a football career do not have to be at odds with each other if the framework conditions are right.
A new generation of female footballers is setting the pace, but they have not forgotten the pioneers. It was moving to see Jamaica’s Khadija Shaw walk up to the Brazil legend Marta after their match, reach over and grab her hand. “I told her that she is an inspiration not only to me,” Shaw said, “but to many girls in the Caribbean and around the world.” Saying that to a pioneer of the game seemed even more important to Shaw than the fact that they had just knocked out Brazil.
What we are watching in Australia and New Zealand is sport in the original sense. Everyone wants to win, sure, but to participate is everything. With this mixture of sporting quality and sporting spirit, the spectator feels entertained and can even relax. And if some of those watching get inspiration for their own lives and exercise more in the future, that would be an added bonus.
For us Europeans, this World Cup should be an example for next year’s Euros. People from different cultures meet, travel around the country, watch football and celebrate together. Along the way, they show how they want to live: freely, together, democratically. Sporting events can create identity, stand for cohesion and resilience and help Europe and its partners to adapt to changing times. That is of huge value.
Philipp Lahm’s column was produced in partnership with Oliver Fritsch at Zeit Online, the German online magazine.
