Big brands finding beauty in this far more beautiful game

The Lionesses have sparked renewed commercial interest in women's football, and a different type of sponsor is now knocking on WSL clubs' doors

- Lawrence Ostlere

Women's football is having another moment. More than 16 million people watched England win Euro 2025 in July – the most-watched TV spectacle of the year – and, as the game leaves behind its summer glow, there is momentum to be seized.

Average Women's Super League crowds are set to bounce this season just as they did after success at the 2012 London Olympics, the 2019 World Cup and the 2022 Euros. There are more seats to fill than ever before after Arsenal, Aston Villa and Leicester committed to play in their clubs' main stadiums this season. It is what the WSL's chief executive, Nikki Doucet, recently called an “ignition moment” for the game.

With new fans come new brands. The self-governing WSL, which split from the Football Association's control two years ago, announced bumper commercial partnerships with Nike and British Gas this summer, and it is not just giant corporations like long-term lead sponsor Barclays who are investing generously in the game. Increasingly, it is now lifestyle brands being drawn in, like the American cosmetics company e.l.f. - which announced a new sponsorship deal with Tottenham Hotspur this season.

It marks something of a gear shift: the cosmetics industry has historically stayed clear of women's football, seeing sport as a separate world, but that perspective is changing. “In the last few years, beauty brands have opened their eyes and woken up to the fact that, first of all, their consumers are also sports fans,” says Lisa Parffitt, co-founder of sports marketing agency The Space Between. “If you look at athletes now, they want to look great because that makes them feel good and they feel really empowered.”