The CommBank Matildas have created an epic movement for change. Records have been broken. Fans filled stadiums, livestreams and living rooms across Australia. Merchandise sales soared and women’s football was the daily topic of conversation across Australia.
Nearly 64% of Australians watched the semi-final against England on Saturday 19 August, making it the most watched television program since the launch of the OzTAM audience measurement system in 2001.
The FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™ united our nation. It was a pivotal moment for Australian football and is inspiring a whole new generation.
To unlock the potential of this crucial event for women’s and women’s sport, more than 400 global trailblazers, local changemakers, community leaders and junior players gathered in Sydney on August 9, 2023 for The Winning Playbook: Leading Innovative Change forum. in Sports.
NSW Women’s Minister Jodie Harrison opened the event saying: “Today is about developing an action plan for future generations of girls to love and practice the sport. »
Minister Harrison also spoke about the Government’s commitment to supporting football at all levels through the $10 million NSW Football Legacy Fund.
Let’s move on to what we learned:
1. LEAD CHANGE
James Johnson, CEO of Football Australia, opened proceedings with an urgent call for action: “Our challenge for governments, businesses, broadcasters and sport governing bodies is to take a stand – to commit, to invest and develop women’s sport because women’s sport is real. And it’s here to stay. Women’s football in Australia has proven that to all of us.
When it comes to leadership, you want to listen to Jill Ellis, the most successful coach in the history of the United States women’s national soccer team and the only coach, male or female, to win back-to-back World Cup titles. world (2015, 2019) since 1934.
Jill called for more women in leadership and decision-making positions. “We need people in these positions to look at everything from TV exposure and rights to sponsorship deals,” she said.
3 key leadership lessons from Jill:
- Adopt the “live better one day” mindset; be better tomorrow than today. This mindset is liberating because it is not only focused on medals or status, but also on growth. This ultimately pushes you to great heights.
- Control the internal, manage the external.
- In any successful organization, employees want two things: to feel valued and to have a clear vision of their role. So make people feel valued and make sure they understand their role – remove any gray areas. People struggle in gray.
2. PARTNERSHIP FOR SUCCESS
Stephanie Rudnick, Head of Public Relations of Angel City FC and Head of Global Communications of MKTG, blew everyone away with the story of Angel City FC – a model of women-led entrepreneurship, a celebration of diversity and a community incubator.
One of FCAC’s innovative approaches to revenue is for players to generate ticket sales through their own social media channels. This win-win strategy brings their audience to the matches and the players receive 1% of the net ticket sales.
Stephanie also talked about how community is their “secret sauce.” Their brilliant partnership model has a 10% Community Impact Pledge – where the partner invests in community initiatives. This drives support in a value-based way.
Values-based partnerships were also key to the learnings shared by LEGO and CommBank from their successful partnerships with Football Australia.
“When considering partnerships, look behind the fame; look for mutually beneficial value,” said Angie Tutt, LEGO Australia, Senior Director and Head of Marketing, who saw LEGO Australia become the first official partner of Football Australia’s Legacy ’23 plan – inspiring and developing tomorrow’s footballers through an inclusive game.
Tamisine Heath, CommBank, Executive Director, Brand Communications and Sponsorship, shared more about the benefits CommBank has seen through its long-term support of women’s sport: “There is some great research into why people are more likely to improve our reputation indicators when they “We look at ourselves, because we support women’s sport and we pursue specific objectives rather than just sponsoring a sports team,” she said.
Rachael Neumann, Flying Fox Ventures, founding partner and investor of Angel City FC, shared a similar sentiment when discussing the development of new investment and operating models. “Investing in women’s sports is good for my values and for value,” she said.
3. DO IT DIFFERENTLY
Kerry Turner, NSW Office of Sport, Participation and Partnership Manager, introduced us to a variety of innovative projects that take a new look at the engagement of women and girls in sport; to build trust with Girls and Dads Football Programto embrace music and art to inspire through the How I Ride Campaign and allow athletes to access essential underwear with ‘The Sports Bra Project.’
The key point to remember? Women’s sport is not the same as men’s sport, and that gives us the incredible opportunity to do things differently.
4. LEGACY FOR THE FUTURE
Current athletes Chloe Logarzo (CommBank Matilda) and Maddy Proud (NSW Swifts co-captain) spoke about changing the sporting landscape for those who follow in their footsteps through advocacy, leadership, strategy, broadcasting and even books for children.
Rising stars of the sport like Naomi Chinnama, CommBank Young Matilda and Rheagan Sialeipata, Sutherland Stingrays spoke about how the landscape has changed significantly for these future legends, but there is still a long way to go.
Looking to the future, FIFA Head of Women’s Football Sarai Bareman spoke about the need to use data to make smarter decisions and inform plans and strategies, given the power of numbers fans flocking to the stands: “The World Cup is the biggest lever you can pull. So far, 1.3 million fans have passed through the turnstiles. We get this nice accelerating effect,” she said.
Sarah Walsh, Football Australia, head of women’s football, legacy and inclusion at the Women’s World Cup, agrees: “We need to look at the ecosystem to change behavior. Our next free streaming deal will be better than the last. We now have the data and can look decision-makers in the eye. This is a movement for women and girls and our position in society.
The closing speech was delivered by Fatma Samoura, FIFA Secretary General. As the first non-European woman to serve as FIFA’s head of administration, Fatma was a pioneer from the moment she took office and oversaw unprecedented growth in women’s football.
“This World Cup is a turning point for football,” she said, sharing the outpouring of emotion and outpouring of support she has witnessed in Australia and New Zealand.
Even though the tournament is over, it is only the beginning for women’s sport and it is up to each of us to act and accelerate the momentum we are witnessing. Each event participant committed to creating a living mural, because we will not rest #TilitsDone.
