TEL AVIV—On the eve of the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023, a major new survey shows that the interest in women's soccer has seen a massive spike since the 2019 World Cup. The WSC Sports survey of 14,000 people in seven countries and five continents found that avid followers of the Women’s World Cup set to increase by 57% from 929 million in 2019 to 1.472 billion in 2023 and that awareness of the tournament is also much higher.
That amounts to 543 million new fans for the tournament, which kicks-off on Thursday July 20.
WSC reported that the tournament registered 46% awareness globally with England (66%) ranking highest, followed by Brazil (59%), co-hosts Australia (58%), United States (43%), Germany (40%), France (33%) and Japan (21%).
“Our research shows conclusively the rate at which interest and awareness of women’s sport is growing globally. It also underlines the role of digital platforms and short-format content in driving a bigger audience for the Women's World Cup," says Daniel Shichman, CEO at WSC Sports.
In the U.S., the survey found that:
- Nearly half (49%) of adults surveyed in the U.S. consume sports content via highlights
- Over half (66%) of people in surveyed in the U.S. do not at all follow the women’s football outside of major tournaments, with only 26% following to some extent
- 8% of adults surveyed in U.S. fully follow the women’s football
- 28% of adults surveyed in the U.S. claim that their biggest barrier to watching women’s sports is the lack of viewing options.
Highlighting the ability of the tournament to connect with new audiences, the survey found that four in ten (40%) who will follow the tournament avidly identified themselves as casual sports followers; in contrast, just 24% of the total audience surveyed identified themselves as casual sports fans. Of the new followers identified, 52% are female.
Digital media is an especially important factor in this growth, the researchers said.
WSC Sports’ research revealed that 30% of the global audience will follow the tournament via YouTube. Streaming services and Facebook are jointly the third most popular method (17%) followed by Google Search (14%) and Instagram (13%).
The survey also found that TikTok (8%) has surpassed Twitter (7%) in its popularity among all sports fans, this is heightened amongst Gen Z with more than a quarter (26%) of 16-24-year-olds typically tapping the vertical video platform for sports content.
The researchers also highlighted the growing impact of short-format video for Gen Z. In the 16-24 year old group, 43%, versus 30% for all ages named YouTube and Instagram (31%, versus 13% overall) as the most popular way to engage with the sports. In contrast only 30% turned to television. In addition, almost four in ten (38%) young adults typically watch sports on a mobile device, compared to just 23% across all age ranges, the study found.
Underpinning the popularity of YouTube and general rise in digital viewership is the increasing interest in highlights and non-live content, especially amongst younger audiences, the researchers said.
A striking 47% of viewers are set to follow the Women’s World Cup via highlights, second only to those watching games live (59%), whilst analysis/commentary (20%), player-led content (18%), features and documentaries (12%) and behind-the-scenes (8%) are expected to be the most consumed types of content during the tournament.
Interestingly, 16–24-year-olds displayed a higher-than-average preference for player-focused coverage (25%, versus 17% for all ages) and behind-the-scenes content (14%, compared to 8% universally).
Utilizing advanced AI technologies, WSC Sports automates the creation and distribution of video content for over 350 teams, leagues, competitions and broadcasters across the globe, including the Women's National Basketball Association and the Ladies Professional Golf Association.
"At WSC Sports we’ve seen video demand from our clients increase 66% - with our AI-powered platform producing 3.5 million videos in the first half of 2023,” Shichman explained. “Sports rights holders are starting to see that more digital content equals more engagement and bigger audiences. This is also true for women’s sport evidenced by the fact that engagement levels for our clients’ YouTube content has risen 35% year-on-year."
“These figures mirror what this research is telling us about women’s sport: the more people watch, the more they want," he concluded. "Women’s sport has a growing and increasingly passionate audience - one that becomes more and more attractive to sponsors and investors, whose contributions can make a huge difference in accelerating the growth of women's leagues, events, and competitions, globally.”
More information is available here.
