In 2020, the Football Association (FA) reported a 54-percent increase in its women’s teams since 2017, reaching the organisation’s target to double its female participation in three years.
Over the years, sports has grown increasingly gender inclusive, allowing football to become one of the most attractive options for women seeking to play sports professionally.
Asia has been no exception to this trend, and has even played a pioneering role in the development of women’s football competitions. During the 1970s, women’s football saw a significant rise in the number of female clubs and teams globally, which contributed to the Asian Federation Confederation (AFC) hosting its first Women’s Asian Cup in 1975. Other major Asian sports competitions such as the Asian Games and the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games soon followed suit, incorporating women’s football as events in the competitions. As such, it is no surprise that the region has contributed a number of impressive female footballers to the scene. Some have even made it to the FIFA Women’s
