But as participation rises, attendance grows and the commercial profile of the game continues to strengthen, an important question emerges: What should the future home of women’s football look like?
In Built For Her Game, hosts Sarah Rock (Boodle Hatfield), Victoria McKeegan (Town Legal) and Rebecca Burnhams (Quod) bring together leading voices from across the game to explore the growing drive for purpose-built facilities for women’s sport and the opportunities these spaces present for players, clubs, supporters and local communities.
Across the series, our guests share perspectives on everything from governance and planning to fan engagement, commercial strategy, design, development and research. Joining us are senior figures from governing bodies, football clubs, planning and development professionals, researchers and industry experts, all offering their unique insight into how facilities can support the next phase of growth in women’s sport.
Whether you’re involved in sport, planning, development, property, governance or simply passionate about the future of the women’s game, this podcast series provides an inside look at one of the most exciting discussions shaping sport today.
From clubs to fans, players to project managers, architects to researchers, Built For Her Game explores what it means to create facilities that are truly built for her game.
In this episode, Sarah Rock (Boodle Hatfield), Victoria McKeegan (Town Legal) and Rebecca Burnhams (Quod) introduce Built for her Game. They discuss the genesis for the series, explain how they fit into the picture and give a sneak preview into the conversations ahead. For decades, the growth of the women’s game has relied largely on infrastructure designed for men — from borrowed grounds and shared facilities to venues that were never intended to support the unique needs of female athletes, supporters and communities. But what should the future home of women’s football look like?
In this episode of Built For Her Game Rebecca, Sarah and Victoria are joined by Sue Day, Director of Women’s Football at The Football Association, to hear her views on facilities designed specifically for the women’s game.
In this episode of Built For Her Game, Sarah, Victoria and Rebecca are joined by Richard Serra, Property and Planning Director at Tottenham Hotspur. Richard shares his perspective on the role facilities play in the development of women’s football and discusses the practical considerations clubs face when planning for future growth. From infrastructure and fan experience to long-term strategic planning, the conversation explores what clubs need from facilities and how these spaces can support the ambitions of the women’s game.
In this episode of Built For Her Game, Sarah, Victoria and Rebecca are joined by Kathleen Carthy and Alex Kendall of AFL Architects to explore how stadiums and sporting facilities can be designed to meet the needs of women’s football.
Kathleen and Alex have played a leading role in shaping the conversation around facilities for the women’s game, including their work on the Women’s Super League Stadium Design Guidance. Drawing on their experience delivering stadiums, elite training facilities and major sporting venues across the UK and internationally, they discuss the principles that should underpin future facilities for women’s sport.
In this episode of Built For Her Game, Sarah, Victoria and Rebecca are joined by Becky Stormer, Head of the UK Sports Sector at CBRE and a player for Fulham FC Women’s Team.
Drawing on her unique experience both as a sports real estate adviser and a participant in the game, Becky offers insight into how clubs can use property and infrastructure to support long-term growth. The discussion explores the strategic role that facilities play in creating sustainable sporting organisations, as well as the opportunities and challenges facing women’s football as it continues its rapid development.
Combining commercial expertise with lived experience as a player, Becky provides a fascinating perspective on how investment in facilities can support athletes, supporters and the future success of the women’s game.
Sarah Rock is Head of Construction at Boodle Hatfield and has extensive experience advising on major sporting projects, including the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and the development of a Premier League club training ground.
Find out more about Sarah
