FIFA hosted the first meeting of the FIFA Women’s Club Licensing Working Group at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland, earlier this month, bringing together representatives from all six confederations to begin shaping a comprehensive framework to elevate standards and accelerate the growth of women's club football worldwide. The two-day meeting served to initiate discussions on the key implementation strategies that will define how FIFA and the confederations collaborate to support clubs in strengthening their structures and using FIFA Women's club competitions as a powerful catalyst for development, including the FIFA Women’s Club World Cup™, the maiden edition of which is set to be held in  2028.

The gathering, which brought together women’s football and club licensing representatives from the confederations, marked an important first step in FIFA’s broader consultation process to support the continued growth and development of the women’s game. The timing of the initiative reflects both the momentum and the challenges facing women’s football. Last year, for the first time ever, all six confederations crowned a women’s continental club champion – a historic milestone that underlined how far the game has come. However, research into the top 40 elite clubs in women’s football shows that 50% generate less than USD 2 million in revenue, only a quarter have fully professional squads, and just one in eight has dedicated training facilities.

Sara Booth, FIFA’s Director of Elite Women’s Football, underlined both the urgent need to act and the opportunities on offer. “Women’s football is growing at a remarkable speed. However, many women’s clubs worldwide still lack the professional structures and consistent standards required to guarantee long-term growth. We need to build sustainable foundations by establishing a framework that enables clubs to thrive, because clubs are where football begins and where the next generation of players will develop,” said Booth. The working group provides a forum for all six confederations to contribute their expertise and identify the best approach to safeguarding the integrity of FIFA women’s club competitions, which will serve as a strategic vehicle to steadily elevate standards across women’s club football worldwide. The topics discussed during the event included establishing a joint road map to raise standards over time with strategies tailored to each region’s unique context and priorities. “FIFA is addressing this challenge on two fronts: launching the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup and the FIFA Women’s Club World Cup – set to become the pinnacle of women’s club football – and investing in club licensing to drive professionalisation, raise standards, strengthen player welfare and support sustainable growth across the women’s game,” commented Booth. Through a holistic approach to achieving minimum standards, FIFA aims to promote consistent improvements across the football landscape, fostering a more competitive, sustainable and vibrant global ecosystem, and one in which clubs at every level are better equipped to serve players, fans and communities for years to come.