Making girls say, ’I love this game’
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Anatolia News Agency
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 08, 2009 00:00
ADANA - With fewer than 1,000 players countrywide, Turkey has mountains to climb to make women's football a prominent branch. The federation is starting from scratch, arranging projects to make girls love the game before attracting them to the field
If women's football is to be as popular as the men's game one day, girls need to like the game as much as guys do.
A Turkish Football Federation official said the organization was trying to spread this love for the game among females in order to make women's football survive. It may be a million miles from the men’s game in terms of interest shown or money spent, but women’s football is taking important steps now.
Speaking to the Anatolia news agency, Erden Or, the director of improving women’s football in the federation, said 16 more teams would be added to women’s football leagues in several levels, which is a sign of the increasing interest in the game.
Currently, there are only 10 football clubs in the top-flight of Turkish women’s football, in addition to 19 outfits in regional divisions. Starting from the 2009-2010 football season, this number would almost be doubled with the addition of 16 clubs.
Or said the federation was focused on improving quality as well as boosting quantity, adding that regulations are imposed on the before they are accepted as official.
"There is an obligation that clubs must found youth teams before forming a top-flight team," said Or, referring to the importance placed on raising a whole new generation of women footballers.
No legs twisted!
But young girls’ willingness to play football usually does not enjoy a warm welcome in Turkey. While most families want their sons to become footballers to enter a world of fortune and fame, girls’ football careers are never rose gardens. Or believes that Turkey needs to overcome such prejudices.
"Parents have some wrong thoughts like, ’Playing football causes twisted legs for girls, or only manly girls can play football,’ but they are totally wrong," Or said. "With a couple of awareness projects, we started to prevail over those wrongful thoughts."
Or said UEFA, the governing body of European football, places great importance on women’s football and has expectations from Turkey while trying to widespread the game among females.
"When we have families saying, ’We will lead our daughters to play football,’ we will feel that we achieved something," Or said. "Turkey really needs its soccer moms."
Women’s participation in football is not limited to playing, according to the director.
Everything counts
"Watching games at the stadium, or from the television on a couch, may be being a part of football as well," he said. "Our federation believes this is an important step, too. Women taking roles as referees, trainers or spectators is deeply important.
"Football is an important social phenomenon, but in our society, it is like a black cat between men and women. We want women to love football, to understand it, and break the prejudices that women can’t play it," Or said of the federation’s gradual plan.
The federation has been executing the "Football for Everybody" project, a grassroots plan for increasing the number of football players countrywide, and part of its aims is to attract women to the game. It aims to address about 150,000 women in four years’ time, increasing the number of licensed players to 6,000. Considering that there are only 798 registered female footballers in the country right now, the federation still has a long way to go. But Or is optimistic on that subject and says that the level of girls’ individual talents is impressive.
"The potential is really high, especially when compared to the number of licensed players," Or said. "We have three national teams, including senior, under-19 and under-17 teams. We are playing some exhibition tournaments with those teams, and have two trophies so far, in competitions organized in Estonia and Turkey.
"When we consider that we have a limited number of players, these achievements and the potential mark our success," he said.
A Turkish Football Federation official said the organization was trying to spread this love for the game among females in order to make women's football survive. It may be a million miles from the men’s game in terms of interest shown or money spent, but women’s football is taking important steps now.
Speaking to the Anatolia news agency, Erden Or, the director of improving women’s football in the federation, said 16 more teams would be added to women’s football leagues in several levels, which is a sign of the increasing interest in the game.
Currently, there are only 10 football clubs in the top-flight of Turkish women’s football, in addition to 19 outfits in regional divisions. Starting from the 2009-2010 football season, this number would almost be doubled with the addition of 16 clubs.
Or said the federation was focused on improving quality as well as boosting quantity, adding that regulations are imposed on the before they are accepted as official.
"There is an obligation that clubs must found youth teams before forming a top-flight team," said Or, referring to the importance placed on raising a whole new generation of women footballers.
No legs twisted!
But young girls’ willingness to play football usually does not enjoy a warm welcome in Turkey. While most families want their sons to become footballers to enter a world of fortune and fame, girls’ football careers are never rose gardens. Or believes that Turkey needs to overcome such prejudices.
"Parents have some wrong thoughts like, ’Playing football causes twisted legs for girls, or only manly girls can play football,’ but they are totally wrong," Or said. "With a couple of awareness projects, we started to prevail over those wrongful thoughts."
Or said UEFA, the governing body of European football, places great importance on women’s football and has expectations from Turkey while trying to widespread the game among females.
"When we have families saying, ’We will lead our daughters to play football,’ we will feel that we achieved something," Or said. "Turkey really needs its soccer moms."
Women’s participation in football is not limited to playing, according to the director.
Everything counts
"Watching games at the stadium, or from the television on a couch, may be being a part of football as well," he said. "Our federation believes this is an important step, too. Women taking roles as referees, trainers or spectators is deeply important.
"Football is an important social phenomenon, but in our society, it is like a black cat between men and women. We want women to love football, to understand it, and break the prejudices that women can’t play it," Or said of the federation’s gradual plan.
The federation has been executing the "Football for Everybody" project, a grassroots plan for increasing the number of football players countrywide, and part of its aims is to attract women to the game. It aims to address about 150,000 women in four years’ time, increasing the number of licensed players to 6,000. Considering that there are only 798 registered female footballers in the country right now, the federation still has a long way to go. But Or is optimistic on that subject and says that the level of girls’ individual talents is impressive.
"The potential is really high, especially when compared to the number of licensed players," Or said. "We have three national teams, including senior, under-19 and under-17 teams. We are playing some exhibition tournaments with those teams, and have two trophies so far, in competitions organized in Estonia and Turkey.
"When we consider that we have a limited number of players, these achievements and the potential mark our success," he said.