6. The Digital Gamechangers: How Fans Are Growing Women’s Football

This week on She Shoots, She Tours! – The Deep Dive, Cath Hurley explores how content creation has become the engine of women’s football fandom — and why super fans, not just clubs or players, are shaping the story of the game. From TikTok explainers to YouTube matchday diaries, this episode looks at how creators translate emotion, context, and culture into content that drives engagement, builds community, and brings new audiences into the sport.

Digging into partnerships, skill-sharing, and the Google Pixel Academy, Cath unpacks how clubs and leagues can support creators without compromising authenticity, examining the risks of misaligned partnerships, over-reliance on single voices, and creator burnout. Featuring examples across the pyramid, she highlights how fan-led storytelling amplifies inclusivity, celebrates values, and makes women’s football feel human, accessible, and exciting in ways traditional media rarely does.

Looking ahead, the episode reflects on empowering fans to step in front of the camera, creating pathways for future content creators, and why the next generation of storytellers is just as critical to the growth of the game as the next generation of players. Thoughtful, insightful, and deliberately unresolved, this is a sort of manifesto for how women’s football can grow through people, not just performance.

Let’s deep dive.