FIFA is stepping up its efforts to close one of the sport’s most persistent blind spots – the lack of research on female athletes – with a new global education program designed to better equip women’s football from grassroots to elite level.
The global governing body on Monday launched its Female Health and Performance Project, an online platform with 30 educational modules on 13 topics, aimed at everyone from young players and parents to coaches, medical staff and all 211 member associations worldwide.
The goal is simple: to give the women’s game access to science that reflects the athletes who play it.
“FIFA’s aim is to optimize the health, well-being and performance of every female footballer, and to improve knowledge about women and girls in football at every level of the game,” said Sarai Bareman, FIFA’s Chief Women’s Football Officer.
“Collectively, we can do so much more to better support our growing number of female players and ensure they are trained, supported and understood based on their specific needs as women.”
Even as women’s football has risen in popularity and participation, most of the research shaping training and recovery is based on data from men, FIFA points out.
A review of more than 5,000 sports science studies published between 2014 and 2020 found that only 34% of participants were women, and only 6% of studies focused exclusively on women.
The result is a one-size-fits-all approach that often misses the mark. Training loads, recovery strategies and performance systems do not always take female physiology into account, potentially limiting performance and increasing the risk of injury.
FIFA says its new programme, developed in collaboration with leading experts and including the views of players including two-time World Cup champion Carli Lloyd, aims to change that.
The modules cover core performance areas such as sleep, nutrition and strength work, but also cover topics long overlooked in sport, including menstrual health, pregnancy, postpartum recovery and menopause.
The initiative builds on pilot programs conducted ahead of the expanded 32-team Women’s World Cup in 2023, when ten national teams received targeted support.
FIFA is now scaling that knowledge globally through its online training centre, making it accessible to everyone in the game.
It also reflects a broader drive to align research with the rapid growth of the sport.
A year after the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil, FIFA said improving access to women-specific data – and encouraging more open discussion about health – will be key to increasing the professionalisation of women’s football.
Part of that effort involves breaking long-standing taboos. By tackling topics such as menstruation, fertility and menopause head-on, FIFA hopes to create a more informed and supportive environment for players, while giving coaches the confidence to better manage athletes’ health.
The modules are publicly available, with content ranging from introductory basics to more advanced guidance.
Published on June 1, 2026
