FIFA has unveiled the Female Health and Performance Project, a new global platform that will provide female-focused health and performance education to players, coaches, medical teams, and football organizations across all 211 member associations. The launch comes as women’s football continues to grow worldwide, while research dedicated specifically to female athletes remains limited.
The new platform offers around 30 educational modules covering 13 areas related to female athlete health and development. The resources have been created to help women footballers access information that better reflects their physical and health needs, while also providing guidance for coaches, support staff, parents, and football administrators.
The Missing Research
FIFA’s review of 5,261 sports and exercise science studies published between 2014 and 2020 revealed that only 34% of participants were women. More notably, just 6% of the studies focused exclusively on female athletes. According to FIFA, these findings help explain why many training methods, recovery programs, and performance systems used in sports have historically been based on research conducted primarily on men.
As women’s football has become more competitive and professional, concerns have grown about the lack of female-specific research available to players and support teams. FIFA says improving access to evidence-based information is essential for helping athletes train, recover, and perform more effectively throughout their careers.
Key Focus Areas
The Female Health and Performance Project includes educational content on female physiology, reproductive health, menstrual health tracking, fertility, pregnancy, postpartum recovery, menopause, pelvic health, nutrition, recovery, sleep, strength and conditioning, screening, and injury prevention. The material is available through FIFA’s Training Centre and is designed for users with different levels of knowledge, ranging from introductory information to more advanced guidance.
The content was developed with contributions from medical experts, researchers, and former players, including FIFA Women’s World Cup winner Carli Lloyd. FIFA says the goal is to make reliable female-specific information more accessible across every level of the game.
Reaching 211 Nations
A key part of the project is its global reach. By making the platform available to all 211 member associations, FIFA is attempting to ensure that knowledge around female athlete health is no longer limited to a small number of elite teams or professional organizations.
FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Sarai Bareman said the organization’s goal is to improve the health, well-being, and performance of women footballers while increasing knowledge around women and girls in football at every level of the sport. The initiative also encourages more open discussion around topics such as menstruation, fertility, pregnancy, postpartum recovery, and menopause, areas that have often received less attention within traditional sports environments.
Future of Women’s Football
The launch arrives as women’s football continues to gain momentum globally, with greater participation, larger audiences, and increasing investment across the sport. FIFA believes that improving access to female-focused education and research can help create better support systems for players while reducing the knowledge gaps that have existed for years.
With 30 educational modules, coverage across 211 member associations, and a strong focus on female-specific health and performance, the Female Health and Performance Project marks FIFA’s latest effort to ensure that women footballers have access to information designed around their own experiences rather than relying solely on systems originally built using male-centered research.