In this week’s Women in Sport Weekly, supported by our partnership with Lidl, we look at the launch of our Women of Influence List, an Afghan evacuation of footballers, a return to the pitch for the Irish Women’s rugby team, a glance at the media coverage being given to Women’s sport and an important first Front Cover on an iconic annual publication for the first time in at least 15 years…

 

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50 WOMEN OF INFLUENCE LIST TO LAUNCH ON MONDAY

It is time to celebrate the ninth edition of our Sport for Business listing of 50 Women of Influence in Irish Sport.

We are proud to do so this year with a new partner in AIG, an organisation that have pledged their commitment to equality in their partnerships with Gaelic Games, Tennis, Golf and more, for whom “Effort is Equal” and with whom we have ambitious plans to extend the reach of this annual celebration of the Women who are making a difference.

They will be drawn as before from the worlds of leadership, of partnership, of storytelling and of performance.

We began this journey in 2013 when challenged that we would never be able to produce a list of twenty Influential Women in Irish Sport. The 20 stretched to 30, then 40 and 50 and it still does not do justice to the talent that is out there.

This year once more, to keep things fresh we will introduce at least 30 per cent of fresh names from last year. That will be the hardest part to have some names replaced but if it was too easy it would be of less value.

The list we will build over the coming weeks is a snapshot of those women who are making a mark on how sport is played, consumed, grown and delivered.

They are part of making the role of women in sport unexceptional by being exceptional in what they do.

Recognition of their contribution is rarely asked for but is fully deserved, and we want your help in identifying those who you feel should be among them.

We will start to publish the first of this year’s list on Sport for Business next week, and share them for all across social media in parallel.

So, who do you think should be on the list for 2021?

 

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FIFA ASSISTS EVACUATION OF AFGHAN FOOTBALLERS

20 of the Afghan Women’s National Football team were on a flight from Kabul to Doha yesterday as part of an evacuation of women believed to be at risk for playing sport under the new Taliban regime in Afghanistan.

We understand that efforts are being made to evacuate more as the pressure increases on women’s right’s to school, to work, to play and more in the country.

 

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IRISH RUGBY TEAM TO PLAY TWO NOVEMBER INTERNATIONALS

The Irish Women’s Rugby team will play against the USA, ranked sixth in the world, on Friday 12th November and Japan on Saturday 20th November.

The Friday night game will be under lights, most likely at Energia Park while the Japan game will be an afternoon kick-off.

Full details of the games will be announced next week, including the number of fans that will be allowed and the broadcast arrangements.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to play in front of our supporters again,” said Captain Ciara Griffin.

“The group will reassemble in the coming weeks and put the building blocks in place ahead of two big Tests. A Friday Night game under the lights promises to be a special occasion and we hope to see as many of our supporters as possible.”

 

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MEDIA COVERAGE OF WOMEN’S SPORT IN THE SPOTLIGHT AGAIN

We took one of our regular looks at the coverage devoted to men’s and women’s coverage in the mainstream media last weekend and found that even on a weekend where there was no marquee event for Women’s sports, the diversity of coverage was much improved.

The Evoke.ie Women’s FAI Cup semi-finals featured prominently across all five of the media we selected, with the opening weekend of the Women’s Super League Basketball featuring in four alongside Women’s hockey, the opening weekend of the Energia AIL League, the English Women’s Super League, and the Irish Women’s Cricket team in Zimbabwe.

The size of the coverage was still dwarfed by that given over to the Men’s game and we will be picking up on that in the coming weeks. With the Irish Women’s Hockey and Football teams both in action next week in crucial World Cup Qualifiers, we will be watching.

Read more of our analysis here

 

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WALL LANDS IRISH TIMES SEPTEMBER AWARD

Vikki Wall of the Meath Ladies Football All Ireland Champions has been named as the September winner of the Irish Times Sportswoman of the Month. She will make way on the shelf now for this alongside her PwC GPA All-Star Player of the Month, her Player of the Match Award and of course her Celtic Cross.

 

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COVER STARS

Wall is also one of the four stars to grace the front cover of the ever-excellent Season of Sundays from Sportsfile. This annual collection of the images shot throughout the Gaelic Games season is an annual institution, with the launch often attended by the Taoiseach of the Day.

Ray McManus and his team have always been very inclusive of the Ladies Football and Camogie Championships but looking back through our own collection dating back 15 years this is the first that has featured either on the iconic Front Cover.

Another marker then for equality of respect and coverage becoming normalised.

 

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FA LAUNCHES #LETGIRLSPLAY CAMPAIGN

The FA has launched a new campaign – Let Girls Play – which supports the ambition to give all girls equal access to play football in schools across England by 2024.

Only 63 per cent of schools currently offer girls’ football in PE lessons and the FA ambition is to raise that to 75 per cent of schools by 2024.

The #LetGirlsPlay campaign supports this ambition by encouraging people to stop, listen and see how they can make a difference  The campaign’s website provides resources to help influence the start of change and allow more girls to feel the mental and physical benefits of exercise through playing football.

Read more and watch the campaign video

 

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WOMEN’S LIONS FEASIBILITY GROUP FORMED

The British & Irish Lions has announced the formation of a Women’s Lions feasibility steering group.  Ireland is represented by former Irish International and Munster Coach, Niamh Briggs, as well as by IRFU Director of Women’s Rugby Anthony Eddy.

The group also contains a healthy mix of Rugby executives and business leaders with representatives from each of three major Lions partners in Sky, Vodafone and Royal London.

Briggs and Shaunagh Brown are included in the 13 strong group as the player representatives and it will be led by Lions Board member and three-time Lions player Ieuan Evans.

Read more and see the full make-up of the group

 

Each week we carry a Women in Sport Weekly Column, highlighting stories here in Ireland and around the world that are relevant to the idea that we are only catching up to what is happening elsewhere and that while we may be strong in some areas, there are certainly others where we need to prod and poke to ensure fairness.

That’s all, it’s not a takeover, it’s not at the expense of sport that is there already, it is just recognition that sport should be more conscious of its obligation to the 50.5 per cent of the population that has just as much right and talent to play sport as anyone.

If you think there is a story around Women in Sport that we should feature please get in touch and let us know.

 

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