The tournament that time forgot

The groundbreaking Women's World Cup that was erased from history

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NEW FACTUAL Copa '71: The Lost Lionesses Tuesday, 10pm, BBC4

In August 1971 a World Cup took place where soccer teams from across the globe were cheered on by record-breaking numbers of fans, leaving host nation Mexico in the grip of football fever.

But, astonishingly, because the unofficial tournament was for women, the event was later written out of the history books by sexist football authorities and has been largely forgotten for five decades.

Now, a feature-length Storyville documentary, produced by tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams, uses previously unseen footage to bring the Copa '71 Women's World Cup back to life, with contributions from the female pioneers who played in it.