FIFA are working hard around the world to help achieve a goal of 60 million female players by 2027. The ambitious target is underpinned by 13 development programmes with all 211 FIFA Member Associations (MAs) eligible to apply for support from world football's governing body. In 2025, FIFA renewed and expanded its Women’s Development Programme in a further boost to women’s football. Additional information can be found here. Inside FIFA looks at just some of the significant recent activity which continues to expand the footprint of women’s football globally.

The Croatian Football Federation (HNS) hosted the final tournament of the U-13 Girls League Finals pilot project, an event implemented with FIFA support through the League Development programme. Building upon the launch of the federation’s new Women’s Football Strategy in May 2026, the league featured 12 clubs representing various regions of Croatia and is designed to strengthen the grassroots base and establish stronger foundations for the future talent identification process.

Montenegro’s first U-16 national league season has been completed. Operated under the auspices of FIFA’s League Development Programme, the league commenced in January and filled a gap in the Football Association of Montenegro’s (FSCG) women’s football talent pathway. The awards for the competition’s best players were presented by national team player Maša Tomašević, while FIFA representative Anja Živković was on hand to present the champions trophy.

Facilitated by FIFA, the Mauritius Football Association (MFA) hosted a two-day strategy seminar focussed on carving out a bespoke Women’s Football Strategy. Six strategic areas were identified to build upon with the aim of strengthening the development of women's football in the Indian Ocean nation.

The Macau Football Association (MFA) hosted a FIFA Women’s Football Campaign targeting girls aged three to 18. The event featured some 250 participants on the day and far exceeded expectations demonstrating a strong demand for women's sports in Macau. “Football empowers young women with confidence, teamwork and resilience. Moving forward, the Macau FA will maintain close collaboration with FIFA to launch more sustainable girls’ football activities and narrow the gender gap in youth sport across Macau,” said Chan Keng Hou, MFA General Secretary.

Football Federation of Chile (FFCh) have outlined their guiding principles for the ongoing growth of local women’s football with the launch of their Women’s Football Strategy. Around 80 stakeholders were on hand for the launch – including representatives of FIFA – which saw four strategic pillars unveiled: competitions, national selections, promotion and communication, and training.

The Ghana Football Association (GFA) hosted two FIFA Women’s Football Campaign festivals and were rewarded for their ambition with a massive turnout of 600 players for the events held in the Volta and Upper West Regions the country. Alongside the festivals, GFA ran life skills training sessions with health partners in order to educate the girls on various topics. Meanwhile, 30 female coaches completed a Confederation of African Football (CAF) C coaching course at the GFA Technical Centre in Prampram.

"This (Women’s Football) campaign is about much more than introducing girls to football, it is about creating opportunities, inspiring dreams and building a structured pathway that allows every talented girl to progress through the ranks. Our vision is simple, to find, train and develop players who will one day proudly represent Ghana at the highest level," said Jennifer Amankwah Sarpong, GFA Head of Women's Football.

The South African Football Association (SAFA) also hosted two Women’s Football Campaign festivals. Conducted in the Mpumalanga province and in the Northern Cape, the well-attended festivals are part of the SAFA’s Women’s Football Strategy with increasing participation being one of the strategy’s key objectives.

“Our campaign was just the beginning, let us secure the future by expanding schools’ programmes, driving grassroots festivals, and creating clear pathways to success. Let’s show the girl child that success in football is possible,” said Dawn Lubisi, SAFA Head of Women’s Football.

FIFA Women’s Football Campaign festivals were held in the south of Mahé, Seychelles, with the theme of "Bringing the beautiful game closer to communities, inspiring the next generation of girls, and creating more opportunities for women in football." National team captain Pascalina Moustache was in attendance to offer support and inspiration, along with fellow national team players. The festival follows the Seychelles Football Federation (SFF) releasing their three-year Women's Football Strategy earlier this year.

FIFA’s Women’s National Team Preparation Programme (WNT-PP) reached an important milestone with 47 MAs represented in person at the DFB Campus in Frankfurt, Germany.

FIFA’s WNT-PP brings together physical preparation coaches, medical staff and multidisciplinary practitioners from MAs worldwide and enjoyed strong acclaim from attendees. The workshop offered a structured, evidence-based learning environment and is designed to elevate the standard of physical preparation for women’s national teams across all six confederations, and overlaps with another new FIFA women’s football programme - the FIFA Female Health and Performance Project.

The opportunity to participate in the WNT-PP, initially only established as a pilot project during the lead-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™, is open to all 211 MAs.

The 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations, which doubles as the African qualifiers for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup™, has kicked-off with the four semi-finalists to stamp their passport for Brazil. Hosted in Morocco, the quarter-finals will take place in Casablanca and Rabat on 8 and 9 August with the successful quartet to join the 14 other nations that have already locked up qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup Brazil™.

Current and former international players from around the world continue to benefit from the FIFA Player Impact Programme. The initiative provides a platform for high-profile players to design and roll-out a bespoke social impact programme. A number of players from cohort one have been active recently. Particularly notable is United States defender Tierna Davidson who has been nominated for the Lauren Holiday Impact Award, which recognises players from USA’s National Women’s Soccer League for outstanding service and character off the field. The 2019 world champion spent nine months creating a programme designed to address the issue of knee ligament injuries among female players.

Brazil football icon Formiga has established Taça das Formigas, an initiative designed to allow young female players in São Paulo's communities a new pathway to football and at the same time break down social barriers. The first edition of the tournament saw 150 girls participate with each receiving uniforms and boots.

New Zealand international Malia Steinmetz has created the Mana Moana Football Collective, an initiative designed to strengthen and build the retention of Pasifika girls in football. The programme is for girls aged 14 - 17 years old of Pacific descent and is based in Auckland.

With the one-year-to-go milestone just passed, candidates interested in being a part of the first FIFA Women’s World Cup™ in South America can now register at volunteer.FIFA.com. Around 6,000 volunteers will support biggest women’s sporting event ever to be held in Brazil across the tournament’s eight Host Cities: Belo Horizonte, Brasília, Fortaleza, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and São Paulo.

Wednesday 5 August marked one month until the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Poland 2026™ kicks-off in the cities of Łódź, Bielsko-Biała, Katowice and Sosnowiec. As excitement grows for the tournament, the Trophy Experience continues to tour Poland and the official song, performed by Polish pop star Blanka, has also been released. Tickets for the tournament are available from FIFA.com/tickets.