Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding of the FIFPro report published on 16 April 2020 that the covid-19 outbreak represents an existential threat to women's football.

We want to see the popularity of women’s sport continue to thrive. We have seen record audiences tune in or turn up to watch international women’s events, for example over 28 million viewers watched the BBC coverage of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup on television and online. Football is also a popular choice for women and girls to get active: it is the second most popular team sport in terms of participation for adult women in England, and the top ranked team sport in terms of participation for girls.

Football clubs form an integral part of this country and it is important they are given as much support as possible during these difficult times. In light of this, the Government announced a comprehensive and sizable package of direct fiscal support for business through tax reliefs, cash grants and employee wage support. Alongside this, Sport England has issued guidance to the sport and leisure sector as well as announcing £195 million of funding, including a £20 million Community Emergency Fund, to help the sector.

The government is also looking forward to the UK hosting the rescheduled women’s UEFA European Championships in 2022, and working to ensure this tournament builds on the fantastic momentum we have seen within the womens’ game in recent years.

The Government will continue to liaise closely with all the football authorities to further understand any difficulties clubs may be experiencing.