The total revenue generated by Football Federation Australia (FFA) in 2018 was $132.5M. Of this gate receipts comprised of $7.6M. Of the $7.6M in gate receipts, $6.9M or 91% came from the A-League, FFA Cup or Socceroos.

Only $600,000 or 7% came from the Matilda’s with the W-League understandably contributing only a tiny fraction.

This is the main reason why W-League players don’t get anywhere near their male counterparts when it comes to remuneration and financial support.

However, the times, they are a-changin'.

The opportunity exists now more than ever for female football fans to help bridge the pay gap between males and females by generating their own revenue.

Many A-League clubs now have W-League only memberships, for those only interested in the W-League. W-League tickets and memberships are significantly cheaper than their A-League equivalents.

The Western Sydney Wanderers have recently released a W-League package for as low as $70 for adults. The likes of Melbourne City, Brisbane Roar, Perth Glory, Newcastle Jets and of course Canberra also have W-League only memberships. 

Another major boost for the W-League is that A-League memberships themselves have always allowed free entry to W-League games. 

Even though free entry in itself won’t generate revenue, the more A-League memberships sold the more revenue generated for clubs to invest in their W League teams. The reality is clubs can’t sustain W League teams purely from revenue generated by the W league. Also the bigger the W League crowds, the more justification females can have for getting a bigger slice of membership revenue.

In a nutshell, there are plenty of chances now for the W League to get bigger crowds. No excuses!

Former Matilda and current Melbourne Victory W-League star, Ella Mastrantonio, was excited that clubs are now selling W League specific memberships.

Mastrantonio, who has also played for Perth Glory, understands the importance of distinguishing the fact the W League stands in its own right.

“I think it’s definitely a step in the right direction in order to generate interest in it and for the fan experience,” she said.

“It gives greater access to games and shows the W-League is a competition on its own.”

Mastrantonio tussling with Lisa De Vanna

W-League games are often played at more football friendly intimate venues. They are usually at a decent time as well. It is often a fun night out with plenty of entertainment apart from the game itself. The players are also fantastic in making the time to interact with fans post-game.

The W-League average crowd figure was 1,528 in the 2018/19 season, in 2017/18 it was 2,122. With the increased exposure it will get due to W-League memberships and additional TV coverage, organisers are hoping it will recover and head towards the 3,000 mark.

Earlier this month it was announced that all W-League games will be shown live on Fox Sports, with one game a week also beamed live on free to air via the ABC. This is a major revenue boost for the women’s game.