Battle of the Sexes Over Fans—Is Men’s Soccer a Substitute for Women’s Soccer?
A summary of the research:
This research looked into what affects how many fans attend women's professional soccer games in Germany. Since women's soccer teams often don't get a lot of money from TV deals, they rely heavily on ticket sales to be successful. The researchers wanted to know if having men's professional soccer games at the same time as women's games takes away potential fans. They studied ten seasons of games in Germany's top women's league to see if there's a connection between when the men's and women's leagues play and how many people come to the women's games.
The study found that when a women's game is played on the same day as a men's Bundesliga game, fewer fans tend to show up. This suggests that fans might choose to go to the men's game instead or simply have less time to attend both. Even more specifically, when the women's and men's teams of the same club have games on the same day, the attendance at the women's game also decreases significantly. Besides scheduling conflicts with men's soccer, other things like how well the teams have been playing recently, whether a game is a rivalry match, and if it's raining also play a role in fan attendance. Interestingly, when UEFA Champions League games happen at the same time as women's league games, fans often choose to watch the UEFA matches.
Here are three key practical takeaways from the article's results for coaches and administrators in women's soccer:
Avoid scheduling women's Bundesliga games on the same day as men's Bundesliga games whenever possible. The research clearly indicates a negative impact on attendance when these schedules overlap, suggesting that fans may see them as substitutes. By trying to schedule games on different days, you can potentially capture a larger audience that is not conflicted with men's matches.
Pay close attention to the scheduling of your club's men's team and actively try to avoid having women's matches on the same day. The study shows a significant drop in attendance when the men's and women's teams of the same club play on the same day. This suggests that even loyal club fans might have to choose between the two. Coordinating with the men's team's schedule to ensure different game days could boost attendance for the women's side.
Consider weekday scheduling strategically, keeping in mind UEFA Champions League matches. While the majority of women's games are on weekends, exploring weekday options could be beneficial, especially if it avoids conflicts with men's league games. However, be mindful of the significant negative impact of overlapping with UEFA Champions League games, which typically take place on Wednesdays. Scheduling weekday games on days other than Wednesday might provide an opportunity to attract more fans.
Authors: Galila Nasser and Christian Deutscher
You can read the entire article here.
