All Eyes on Cardiff
Andy Greeves speaks to former Wales international and ex-Sport Wales chair Laura McAllister CBE about her excitement about the UEFA Women's Champions League Final coming to Cardiff this June.
18 January, 2017
Soccerphile has previously written about the recent growth in popularity of women's football in Great Britain. The FA Women's Super League (FA WSL) that was established back in 2010 provided a number of professional contracts for players while the London 2012 Olympic Games gave the sport a mainstream spotlight. A crowd of 70,584 watched the Great Britain v Brazil Group E match at Wembley on July 31, 2012 - a British record crowd for a women's football match - while millions more tuned in on television.
Two of the last six UEFA Women's Champions League Finals have been staged in England - at Fulham's Craven Cottage ground in 2011 and at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge two years later. Later this year, Wales will host the showpiece occasion at the Cardiff City Stadium on June 1, 2017, two days before the men's UEFA Champions League Final will be played across the Welsh capital at the Principality Stadium.
Former Welsh international Laura McAllister CBE is involved in promoting the women's final and is excited by the opportunity it presents to further grow the sport both in Wales.
"I think this UEFA Women's Champions League Final can have the same kind of impact for the women's club game in Wales as the London 2012 Olympics did for the international game," says McAllister.
"The women's game, both here in Wales and worldwide, needs new spectators and I feel will have a fertile market for the women's football here. Few football fans will have had the opportunity to see a real top class women's match and obviously you can't get more high profile than a UEFA Women's Champions League Final. The standard will be fantastic and if football fans get the opportunity to see this final, I'm sure they will be keen to watch more women's football."
In addition to the final showcasing the women's game, hosting two major finals in Cardiff will be a major accolade for Wales. The finals come on the back of the fine performances of Chris Coleman's Wales men's team at UEFA Euro 2016, who reached the semi final of the tournament. Cardiff's Principality Stadium (formerly known as the Millennium Stadium) meanwhile hosted the FA Cup and Football League Cup finals between 2001 and 2007 as Wembley Stadium was re-built.
"All the eyes of the sporting world will be on Cardiff and Wales in June," comments McAllister. "Images of our capital city will be beamed across the world and people will be watching how we put on a big event. After the Euros, when the Welsh team really sold Wales to the rest of the world, this is another great opportunity to keep up the momentum and show everyone the passion we have for sport in Wales and the ability we have to stage huge events."
Due to the capacity of the Cardiff City Stadium (33,280), the 2017 UEFA Women's Champions League Final won't be able to break the attendance record for a club match in Europe. That currently stands at 50,212, which was set at the final in Munich back in 2012. UEFA, the Football Association of Wales (FAW) and McAllister are all hopeful of a sell-out crowd for this big match though.
"It's a big ambition, but it's doable," reflects McAllister on the aim of having a sell-out crowd. "It would be great to see the stadium packed with lots of youngsters. With this magnificent occasion, we're obviously looking to inspire future generations and girls especially. The FAW has big aspirations for girls' football."
Established back in early 1970s, Wales' women's team are yet to make it to the finals of a major tournament. Performances have been on the up in recent years though and at the time of writing, Wales are ranked as the 32nd best women's team in the world and the 20th best in Europe.
"We've still got work to do," reflects McAllister on the women's game as a whole in Wales. "We know women's football in Wales isn't as strong or robust as the men's game and there are things we need to do. If we can get more female coaches and volunteers alongside what is a fantastic Welsh women's international squad, then we really have a lot of inspiration role models for the next generation to look up to.
"It would be great to have more Welsh players turning professional. First of all though, we need to get a Women's Super League club in Wales. Probably the standard of club football isn't high enough for our top international players currently, which is why they play outside of the county. A FA WSL club in Wales would help towards to aim of having more Welsh professionals I'm sure."
McAllister won 24 caps for Wales between 1994 and 1998 and also had a long and distinguished career in club football turning out for the likes of Millwall Lionesses and Cardiff City.
"I come from a football mad family," she smiles. "My grandfather was a huge Cardiff City and Wales supporter and took me to my first game when I was just three. I was captivated by watching football and of course I wanted to go out and play the sport too after having watched it. That shows the legacy that the UEFA Champions League Finals in Cardiff can have. After a youngster sees those matches, hopefully they will fall in love with the sport like I did."
Tickets for the 2017 UEFA Women's Champions League Final go on sale on February 21. More information can be found here - www.uefa.com/womenschampionsleague/ticketing/
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