“One of the clichés I hear the most is: ‘Why don’t you go to school, or raise a child for a pound?’
“But it would destroy the product – it’s elite competition.”
Aston Villa general manager Maggie Murphy is being interviewed Competitor About the response she gets when she discusses her work trying to attract more followers.
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Historically, women’s football’s core selling points have been the sport’s commitment to inclusivity, greater accessibility and intimacy with players, lower ticket prices and a sense of safety for children and parents. These sentiments are well captured under the term “family friendly.”
The two usual reactions to the term “family friendly” are to recoil or to embrace it tightly.
It was a logical marketing strategy for clubs, especially in the early days of women’s football: to present themselves as a counterculture to the historically more expensive and restrictive culture of men’s football.
To be clear, none of these family-friendly attributes should be given up.
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However, in January, Arsenal fans were spotted casually sitting at Chelsea’s home ground at Stamford Bridge. Following a complaint to the club, a Chelsea fan received an email saying the true spirit of women’s football lies in its inherent inclusivity. Obviously, designated home and away games hinder this.
Although Chelsea’s sentiments were in direct breach of club policy and no steps were taken to stop the unpleasant conflict, the club’s decision highlights how family-friendly has become a major rift in women’s football’s suspension of the season.
While family-friendly embodies the values of inclusivity, equality, and accessibility, it has also become synonymous with a watered-down movement that is so afraid of alienating anyone that it risks losing the ability to meaningfully connect with anyone.
As the game grows in size, so does the population. Which begs the question: How logical is it to continue to hitch yourself so uniquely to the family-friendly wagon? At what point is it worth crafting an identity that transcends this one and differentiates you from the rest of the family-friendly vibe?
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No club in the WSL is better at doing this than Arsenal, as evidenced by regularly selling out the Emirates Stadium and breaking domestic attendance records.
But it’s an issue that other WSL and WSL2 clubs, particularly those in women’s football that lack the heritage of Arsenal or the success of Chelsea, are trying to solve in real time.
“We should be bigger than we are,” said Sarah Breslin, co-founder of the fan group Villa Bellas. “We should have better attendance. The key is to capture that.”
Murphy arrived at Villa in August with a mandate to do just that, from increasing visitor numbers to commercial growth and independent restructuring. Hosting the club’s first fans forum for the women’s team was a first step, with Breslin admitting it was an “abnormality” that immediately brought about a “cultural shift” in terms of fan engagement.
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“It’s critical to figure out who we are,” she said. “We have to have something to say and present ourselves in a certain way. ‘Who are Aston Villa? What do we stand for?'”
While Villa’s men’s team are third in the Premier League and have a rich history, the women’s side are more humble. It was not until the 2019-20 season that they successfully promoted to England’s top league. Their highest WSL finish in 2022-23 is fifth place.
The positioning of Villa Women ranges from a place for new fans to gather, to a point of contact for family members, to another opportunity to support the club.
Murphy tried to create a pregame event that reflected that.
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Sunday’s pre-match fan zone ahead of Villa’s 7-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur – which has been held in the Holt Stand at Villa Park since January due to the settled British weather – included local comedians cracking jokes and pouring drinks on stage, while children found joy in an arcade-style basketball game and kicked a ball around on a small makeshift pitch. Former England internationals Karen Carney and Jill Scott will host a live podcast in a few weeks, with the event almost sold out.
Earlier this year, Murphy launched the 12 Man Challenge, in which fans submit ideas to grow their fan base, with the winning proposal voted on by Murphy and a panel of three players, who receive funding from the club to help turn the ideas into reality. The winner will get a mini fan documentary as well as a women’s team playlist.
“I’m trying to create a club environment that I want to exist as a fan watching a game, accessible to everyone but not restricted,” Murphy said.
Of course, that doesn’t mean thousands of people flock to Villa Park. Sunday’s game against Tottenham attracted more than 2,500 spectators at the 42,640-seat Villa Park.
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The temptation is to dwell on it. Ahead of the 2025-26 season, there is concern over a 10% drop in attendances from the previous season (from 7,361 to 6,661), according to the Women’s Sports Trust (WST). Some believe the 2025-26 WSL season cannot follow suit, especially after England win the European Cup again.
However, the WSL’s average attendance in the first six rounds was 6,500, down 1% from the same period last season, according to WST.
However, there are challenges beyond Murphy and others’ control, such as results on the pitch (Villa have lost four of their last five games) and kick-off times.
Since September, WSL matches have been almost exclusively fixed in Sky Sports’ Sunday 11.55am or 12pm time slots, much to the chagrin of some clubs trying to boost attendances with pre-match events.
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“Then you ask the actors to perform at 10.30am before kick-off at 12pm,” Murphy said. “Kids and their parents have football games on Sunday morning. We’re trying to work with colleges, but college kids coming here at 10:30 a.m. on a Sunday? Probably not. So who are we for? Friends who want to get together and drink beers? 10:30 a.m.?
“What we know about female football fans is that people like to have a good time. We know people spend more money per head than male football fans. But we’re almost losing our hands.”
Murphy did not blame WSL football for game times, which are ultimately decided by Sky Sports and the BBC, with the WSL signing a historic £65m five-year contract with the BBC before the season.
Murphy isn’t the only one trying to unravel the mystery of growing attendance. There is a growing consensus in the league that Arsenal’s success is not only the result of investment and careful planning, but also the result of time. Growth is never linear. It requires patience and building a discernible identity.
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For all the activation she can provide, Murphy knows identity lies in football itself.
“Women’s football is also a product of the pitch,” she said. “I want people to have a great day, no matter what happens on the pitch. But that only applies to people who come regularly. People who haven’t come yet won’t necessarily come to a football game just because we have a live podcast.
“But you have to trust your North Star,” she added. “The experience in women’s football can be very bland. I want Villa to be the center of the WSL, right in the middle of the country.
“We don’t want people driving down the motorway and not coming to Villa Park. They need to come here because they want to come here because they have a good time.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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