Empty seats and broken promises

Let's be honest, for all the incredible strides made in women’s sport, some moments still leave us scratching our heads.

While next year’s Women’s Rugby World Cup final is geared up to be a blockbuster, just recently, the WXV tournament kicked-off with a damp squib. The opening matches of the series were a far cry from packed houses. In fact, in Vancouver, BC Place, a massive 54,500-seat stadium, was barely a third full for the matches featuring the world’s top teams. In Cape Town, a measly 291 people turned up to watch Australia beat Wales. Yikes.

Now, not every match has to be a sell-out, but when you're staging a major tournament in a country where rugby isn't the biggest sport, venues and promoters must do something to drum up excitement. It all seems to have been handled poorly.

Things are far from perfect in other ball sports too. Let’s not forget about the postponed Chelsea-Manchester United match in the Women's Super League. With the Kingsmeadow stadium sold out, it was a huge deal. But due to scheduling conflicts with the Women's Champions League, the match was postponed. The Chelsea Women Supporters Group was understandably upset, calling it an "absolute failure."

We’re in a professional era of sports. These kinds of scheduling issues simply shouldn’t happen, and fans can’t be losing money on travel and tickets because of last-minute changes.

Lack of attendance and cancelled matches – these aren’t just worrying from a fan perspective. They’re huge commercial issues. Fewer spectators mean fewer ticket sales. This directly impacts the revenue generated by the event organisers.

It can also lead to reduced broadcasting value. Television rights for sporting events are often sold based on viewership numbers, so lower attendance = less interest from broadcasters.

Then there’s the damage caused to the sport’s brand – empty stadiums can create a negative perception of the sport, potentially deterring new fans and sponsors. This perpetuates stereotypes too – the contrast between packed stadiums for men's sports and sparsely attended women's events creates a sense of inequality, harming image, and leading to missed opportunities for growth.

It's clear that organisers need to step up their game. Elite sportswomen deserve better. They deserve packed stadiums, fair scheduling, and the respect they've earned. Let's hope that the future of women's sports is brighter than the recent challenges have shown.