2023 saw a monumental shift in the way women’s sports were received and reported by the public, but it was not something that happened overnight. This is something that has been built upon throughout the last ten years, but also a spark that has started to burn starting in 2020. Many different codes and sports have used this spark and has seen rises in everything from viewership to interest and attendance.
The team most people think about when asked about women’s sports in Australia is the Matildas and the World Cup. However, the public’s interest in the team started years beforehand.
The 2023 World Cup embraced record viewership and attendance with nearly 2 million tickets sold and over 11 million watching the semi-final vs England as the team went through a history-making tournament run, finishing fourth, the best result for either men’s or women’s teams.
Prior to this, the Matildas held the record for the most watched Australian women’s sports team when over 2.32 million watched the semi-final vs Sweden at the Olympics in Tokyo, breaking the record twice in this tournament with their group game (also verse Sweden) getting 1.4 million viewers. Before this, the record was owned by one of the most successful teams in history – our national cricket team.
Australia Women’s Cricket – Success and Records
86,174 people were in attendance on the 8th of March 2020 at the MCG as Australia versed India in the T20 World Cup final. Everyone eagerly watching on as Australia claimed their 5th World Cup title in the format and 11th overall. This game also held the record at the time of 1.2 million live viewers and holds the record for the most attended women’s cricket match in the world.
Cricket Australia also has one of the highest-regarded domestic leagues in the world in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), which attracts some of the best talent and highest viewership in Australia.
The final in 2023 between the Adelaide Strikers and Brisbane Heat had an average viewership of over 410,000, which was the highest-rated match in 2 years for the competition.
This season also had the highest attendance since the WBBL became a stand-alone event in 2019 with 95,124 fans attending throughout the season. All eight of the clubs in the competition received an increase in attendance and six clubs set records.
A lot of the clubs played in some of the biggest stadiums this year, including the two Melbourne teams which played the first Women’s cricket match at the MCG since the World Cup final.
A Look At The Domestic Game
Domestic competitions are one of the most important parts of sports in Australia and with this rise many of the different tournaments are thriving. Here is a look at how some of these competitions have grown in the past 2 years.
Viewership
In 2022, Fox Sports did a report looking at viewership for women’s sports and found that 66% of Australians watched games on TV with 69% watching more since the pandemic.
A-League (Football/Soccer)
Since the World Cup, there has been an increase in attendance, with the A-league’s first round smashing records. For the first 2 matches of the round over 17,000 people attended breaking records for highest attendance for a single match (11,471) and for a single round with four games yet to be played.
AFL and League
The AFLW also credited the “Matildas Effect” for an increase in attendance, with an increase of over 1000 people from the previous season.
Another league on the rise is the NRLW, which has over 7.2 million viewers across the season with 1.02 million watching the final last October.
Where to Next?
The World Cup has changed how many people have started to perceive women’s sports with a steep incline in both attendance and viewership, but it is truly the result of many years of hard work and dedication from many different codes all thriving on this spark. But there is still a way to go till these sports reach there true potential.
There are so many other sports codes, teams and tournaments that I have not mentioned today but would love to hear more about what they are doing to change the game in the comments.
Changing The Game 
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