Have the Matildas Inspired the Next Generation? Exploring the Role the FIFA Women’s World Cup Played on Adolescent Girls’ Grassroots Participation

Sporting mega-events (SMEs) such as the FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) are often promoted as opportunities to generate population-level physical activity legacies by increasing sport participation in host countries. This study explores the dual perspectives of adolescent female football players and their coaches on the influence that hosting the WWC had on adolescent female participation. Three adolescent girls’ football teams ( n = 31) participated in focus group discussions, and nine coaches participated in semistructured interviews. The findings support the notion that female SMEs provide host nations with an opportunity to develop sport participation legacies for adolescent girls. The results indicate that adolescent females were inspired by the emergence of same-gender role models and the change in discourse surrounding female athletes because of the WWC. However, community football clubs faced barriers such as limited funding, guidance, and resources, which hindered their capacity to translate inspiration into participation growth. These findings indicate that while female-only SMEs can increase interest in grassroots sport participation among adolescent girls, greater investment, clearer governance support, and targeted legacy planning are required for community clubs to effectively capitalize on these opportunities. This work will provide insights for policymakers that adolescent girls should be positioned as a key target group within future SME legacy strategies to support a sustainable increase in female sport participation.