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Women's football first became popular on a large scale at the time of the First World War, when employment in heavy industry spurred the growth of the game, much as it had done for men fifty years earlier. The most successful team of the era was Dick Kerrs Ladies of Preston, England, who made up most of the England team for the first Women's International (playing Scotland in 1920, and winning 22-0).
Despite being more popular than some men's football events (one match saw a 53,000 strong crowd), women's football in England suffered a blow in 1921 when The Football Association outlawed the playing of the game on Association members' pitches, on the grounds that the game (as played by women) was distasteful. This led to the formation of the English Ladies Football Association, and play moved to rugby grounds. The English Women's FA was formed in 1969 (as a result of the increased interest generated by the 1966 World Cup), and the FA's ban was finally lifted in 1971.
In the 1970s, Italy became the first country with professional women's football players, albeit on a part-time basis. The first full-time professional team was the United States national squadThe United States women's national football (soccer) team operated by the United States Soccer Federation, is the first women's team in the sport made up of full-time professionals. It is also one of the most successful women's national football teams, ha, and in 19921992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday. Events January January The Internet Society is formed. January 1 Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Perez de Cuellar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General January 1 George H. Bush becomes the fi, Japan was the first country to have a professional women's football league.
In 1937Events January January 1 Anastasio Somoza becomes President of Nicaragua January 11 The first issue of Look magazine goes on sale in the United States. January 19 Howard Hughes sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours,, Dick Kerrs played Edinburgh Ladies in "The Championship of Great Britain and the World", but there was no formal international tornament until 1982Events January January 6 William Bonin is convicted of being the "freeway killer". January 8 AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions January 11 Mark Thatcher, son of the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, disappears in the Sahara du, when the first UEFAThe Union of European Football Associations almost always referred to by the abbreviation UEFA (pronounced you-AY-fuh), is the administrative and controlling body for European football. It represents the national football associations of Europe, running n European Competition For Representative Women's Teams was launched. The finals, in 1984This page is about the year 1984. For other uses of 1984, see 1984 (disambiguation). 1984 is a leap year starting on Sunday (link shows calendar). Events January January 1 Brunei becomes a fully independent state January 1 AT&T is broken up into 22 indepe, were won by SwedenThe Kingdom of Sweden Konungariket Sverige in Swedish) is a Nordic country in Scandinavia, in Northern Europe. It is bordered by Norway on the west, Finland on the northeast, the Skagerrak and the Kattegat on the southwest, and the Baltic Sea and the Gulf. In 19871987 is a common year starting on Thursday. Events January January 1 Nunavut's capital changes it name to Iqaluit from Frobisher Bay. January 3 Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. January 4 An Amtrak train, the first European Cup final was also won by Sweden. Since then, the European Cup has been dominated by Germany, which has won five of the six subsequent competitions.
The first Women's World Cup was held in China in 1991, and was won by the USA. The third Cup, held in the United States in 1999, drew worldwide television interest and a final in front of a 90,000-strong Los Angeles crowd, where the home team won 5-4 on penalty kicks. The image of American player Brandi Chastain celebrating the winning goal by stripping off her shirt (to reveal a modest sports bra) and waving it around, and finally sinking to her knees is not only one of the most recognized images in this sport, but perhaps the most famous image of any women's sport.
Besides the United States and Germany (which won the 2003 World Cup), the strongest women's teams have traditionally been Norway, China, and Sweden, with nations like Brazil and Canada emerging as powers.
In 2002, FIFA inaugurated a women's youth championship, officially called the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship. The first event was hosted by Canada. The final was an all- CONCACAF affair, with the USA defeating the host Canadians 1-0 with an extra-time golden goal.
See also: machismo, women´s sport.