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Football · Level 4: Intermediate · Sub-level 4.49

Women's Football History

10 tests · 100 facts · updated 12 October 2026 · markdown

Dedicated history of women's football: from Dick, Kerr's Ladies (1917, 53,000 crowd Boxing Day 1920) through the 1921 FA ban lifted 1971, USWNT's 4 WCs, Lyon's 8 UWCLs, Marta's 17 WC goals, and modern icons Aitana Bonmatí, Alexia Putellas, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe. Includes the equal pay movement (USA 2022 lawsuit) and pioneers.

Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.

Test 1Origins and pioneersTake a test

  1. Dick, Kerr Ladies FC, from Preston, was founded in 1917 and played fundraising games during and after the First World War; the team, later known as Preston Ladies, was disbanded in 1965.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  2. At Goodison Park on Boxing Day 1920, with thousands more locked outside. The FA banned the women's game from its grounds eleven months later.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  3. The FA banned women's football at FA-affiliated grounds on 5 December 1921, calling it 'quite unsuitable for females'. Lasted 50 years.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  4. The FA ban was lifted in 1971 — 50 years after imposition. Women's football then began growing officially.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  5. Dick, Kerr Ladies beat a French XI 2-0 at Deepdale in Preston on 30 April 1920, before about 25,000 people.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  6. In China in 1991, in a tournament FIFA did not yet call a World Cup on the trophy. The field reached thirty-two by 2023.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  7. Women's football debuted at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. USA won gold. 8 teams competed.

    Source: Women's Olympic football history · recall

  8. Ada Hegerberg (Lyon, Norway) won the inaugural 2018 Ballon d'Or Feminin. Her famous 'do you know how to twerk?' incident overshadowed the ceremony.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  9. UEFA Women's Cup (2001-02 to 2008-09) was renamed UEFA Women's Champions League from 2009-10.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

  10. The FA created a summer league in 2011 with a fixed number of licensed clubs, moving to a winter calendar and promotion and relegation later.

    Source: WSL history · recall

Test 2USWNT dynastyTake a test

  1. USA: 4 Women's World Cups — 1991 (China), 1999 (home), 2015 (Canada), 2019 (France). Most of any nation.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC records · recall

  2. Scurry saved China's third kick, from Liu Ying, and Brandi Chastain scored the fifth to win it.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  3. Brandi Chastain's iconic winning penalty (and shirt celebration) at the Rose Bowl in front of 90,185 fans. USA won 5-4 on pens.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  4. Kristine Lilly earned 354 caps for USA — the world record for men or women. Retired 2010 aged 39.

    Source: US Women's Soccer records · recall

  5. Mia Hamm was USA's icon — 158 international goals (record at retirement in 2004). Won 2 WCs, 2 Olympics.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  6. At the first tournament in 1991, including five in one match against Chinese Taipei.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC records · recall

  7. Alex Morgan was USA's iconic 2015 and 2019 WC-winning striker. Scored 5 goals in USA's 13-0 vs Thailand at 2019 WC.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  8. Megan Rapinoe won 2019 Ballon d'Or Feminin. Led USA to 2019 WC title. Golden Boot and Player of Tournament winner.

    Source: US Women's Soccer awards · recall

  9. Rapinoe converted a penalty on the hour and Lavelle struck from distance eight minutes later, in a 2-0 win over the Netherlands in Lyon.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  10. One hundred and eighty-four, more than any man or woman at the time, many of them headers. She retired after the 2015 World Cup.

    Source: US Women's Soccer records · recall

Test 3Marta and Brazilian womenTake a test

  1. Seventeen across six tournaments, from 2003 to 2023, more than any man or woman has scored at a World Cup.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC records · recall

  2. Five in a row from 2006 to 2010 and a sixth in 2018, a record in the women's game.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  3. Marta played as an attacking forward or left winger. Deadly with her left foot. 115+ Brazil goals.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  4. Brazil beat the United States in the final in Rio, with Marta among the scorers through the tournament.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  5. Germany won 2-0 in Shanghai, though Marta took both the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  6. Every edition but one; Argentina won in 2006. Brazil have never won the World Cup or Olympic gold.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  7. Her sixth and last World Cup. She announced her international retirement in April 2024, played at the Paris Olympics that summer, then returned to captain Brazil in the 2025 Copa America Femenina.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  8. From 1995 to 2019, a record for any player, men or women. Marta reached six.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  9. He meant it as the highest compliment he could pay. She won six FIFA world player awards and scored more World Cup goals than any man or woman.

    Source: Women's football history · applied

  10. Marta scored seventeen across five tournaments from 2003 to 2019 and played a sixth in 2023 without adding to the tally; Klose's sixteen stood as the men's record until it fell at the 2026 World Cup.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

Test 4Lyon dynastyTake a test

  1. Lyon (Olympique Lyonnais) has 8 UWCL titles: 2011, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 — a record.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League records · recall

  2. Ada Hegerberg is Lyon's iconic striker and WCL top scorer. Won six UWCLs with Lyon (2016-2020, 2022). Ballon d'Or Feminin 2018.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  3. Wendie Renard captained Lyon for years. Multi-title UWCL winner. French international. 6ft tall.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  4. Under three different coaches, which is how completely the club had outgrown the rest of the competition.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League records · recall

  5. Renamed in 2024 from Division 1 Feminine, as part of a restructuring of the French women's game. Lyon have dominated it for two decades.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  6. Hegerberg has 66+ UWCL goals — Lyon's all-time top scorer and Women's UCL all-time top scorer.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League records · recall

  7. She won the competition with Lyon as a player in 2011 and 2012, then again from the touchline in 2022.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

  8. Eight titles between 2011 and 2022. Real Madrid took sixty-eight years to reach fifteen in the men's competition, so Lyon have won more titles in a far shorter span than any men's club has managed.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League records · recall

  9. Jean-Michel Aulas took over the women's section in 2004 and turned it into Europe's leading side.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  10. Four, in 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2026. Lyon won in 2020 and 2022, and Arsenal in 2025.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

Test 5Barcelona Femení eraTake a test

  1. 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2026. They lost the 2025 final to Arsenal in between.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League records · recall

  2. Barcelona were 4-0 up inside 36 minutes in Gothenburg, their first title in the competition.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  3. In 2023, 2024 and 2025, the first player to win the women's award three years running.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  4. Alexia Putellas won 2 Ballon d'Or Feminin (2021, 2022). Recovered from ACL injury to remain a top player.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  5. Barcelona Femení became fully professional in 2015 — significantly ahead of many rivals.

    Source: Barcelona Femení history · recall

  6. Thirty wins from thirty, the season before the top flight was relaunched as Liga F.

    Source: Liga F history · recall

  7. 159 in thirty matches, more than five a game.

    Source: Liga F records · recall

  8. Alexia Putellas captains Barcelona Femení. Multi-Ballon d'Or Feminin winner. Barcelona's icon.

    Source: Barcelona Femení history · recall

  9. The eleventh came in 2025-26, the seventh in a row, counting the seasons before the league became Liga F in 2022.

    Source: Liga F records · recall

  10. Patricia Guijarro (Spain) is Barcelona Femení's midfield partner to Bonmatí. Multiple UWCLs.

    Source: Barcelona Femení history · recall

Test 6Equal pay movementTake a test

  1. USWNT settled their equal pay lawsuit with US Soccer in February 2022 for $24 million + commitment to equal pay going forward.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  2. Megan Rapinoe was outspoken about equal pay; the team's 2019 World Cup victory parade and City Hall ceremony in New York were met with chants of 'equal pay'.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  3. Plus a binding commitment to equal pay in future contracts, agreed in February 2022 after three years of litigation.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  4. Twenty-eight players sued US Soccer in March 2019, months before winning the World Cup, and the case settled in 2022.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  5. WUSA played from 2001 to 2003, WPS from 2009 to 2011 and the NWSL from 2013. England's WSL turned professional in 2018.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  6. The men's squad accepted a small cut so the women's allocation could roughly double. The United States settled a lawsuit on the same principle five years later.

    Source: Women's football history · recall

  7. FIFA tripled the women's fund and still paid a quarter of the men's. A separate 150 million covered prize money, preparation and club payments together.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  8. A separate broadcast deal, larger sponsorships and matches moved into the clubs' main stadiums followed within a few seasons.

    Source: WSL history · recall

  9. Twenty-eight players filed against US Soccer in 2019, and the case settled for twenty-four million dollars in 2022.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  10. Spain's Liga F (formerly Primera División Femenina) became fully professional in 2022 — with a new commercial structure.

    Source: Liga F history · recall

Test 7Modern iconsTake a test

  1. Her second in a row, after a season in which Barcelona won the Champions League again. She added a third in 2025.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  2. Horan took the armband after Becky Sauerbrunn was ruled out injured. The USA went out in the round of 16, their earliest exit ever.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  3. Williamson lifted the trophy at Wembley aged 25. Millie Bright captained the side at the 2023 World Cup in her absence.

    Source: England Women's football · recall

  4. Alexandra Popp — Germany's iconic 2020s striker. Also 2022 Euro finalist.

    Source: Germany Women's football · recall

  5. Aitana Bonmatí won 2023 Ballon d'Or Feminin after Spain won 2023 WC and Barcelona won UWCL.

    Source: Women's football awards · recall

  6. For Arsenal against Barcelona in Lisbon, eighteen years after the club's only previous European title.

    Source: Sweden Women's football · recall

  7. Vivianne Miedema (Arsenal, then Man City) — Netherlands' 2020s icon and WSL all-time top scorer.

    Source: Netherlands Women's football · recall

  8. Sam Kerr captains Australia's Matildas. Also plays for Chelsea in the WSL. Iconic 2020s striker.

    Source: Australia Women's football · recall

  9. The left-back's shot beat England in Sydney and gave Spain their first world title.

    Source: Spain Women's football · recall

  10. Hamm was nineteen at the inaugural tournament in China in 1991. Rodman did not make a senior appearance until 2022.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

Test 8Legendary managersTake a test

  1. DiCicco had also won Olympic gold in 1996. Heinrichs won gold in 2004, and Sundhage in 2008 and 2012.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  2. The Netherlands in 2017, then England in 2022 and 2025, with two different countries.

    Source: UEFA Women's Euro history · recall

  3. Emma Hayes won seven between 2015 and 2024, alongside five FA Cups, and took over the United States in 2024.

    Source: WSL history · recall

  4. She was appointed in 2021, so the 2020 title belongs to Jean-Luc Vasseur. She had also won the competition at Lyon as a player.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

  5. Sonia Bompastor replaced Emma Hayes in 2024 and won the WSL in her first season.

    Source: WSL history · recall

  6. Emma Hayes (British) took over USWNT in summer 2024 — first British USWNT coach. Won Paris 2024 Olympic gold.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  7. Jorge Vilda managed Spain to 2023 Women's WC win. Amid controversy after Rubiales kiss scandal. Replaced by Montse Tomé.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  8. Jill Ellis managed USA to back-to-back Women's WCs (2015 and 2019). Retired after 2019 win.

    Source: US Women's Soccer history · recall

  9. They lost 2-0 to the USA in Lyon. The Netherlands have never won the tournament; Wiegman moved to England in 2021.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  10. Rio 2016 was her last tournament. She had also won the 2007 World Cup and two European titles.

    Source: Germany Women's football · recall

Test 9Recent tournamentsTake a test

  1. Across Australia and New Zealand, the first edition in the southern hemisphere and the first with thirty-two teams.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  2. Spain won 2023 Women's WC — beating England 1-0 in Sydney. Olga Carmona scored. Coached by Jorge Vilda.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  3. 2023 Women's WC expanded to 32 teams (from 24). 8 groups of 4, then knockouts.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  4. A 1-0 win over Brazil through Mallory Swanson, and Emma Hayes's first tournament in charge.

    Source: Women's Olympic football history · recall

  5. Mallory Swanson scored the 57th-minute winner for USA in a 1-0 win vs Brazil in Paris. Iconic Emma Hayes debut.

    Source: Women's Olympic football history · recall

  6. A 1-1 draw in Basel, Hannah Hampton saving twice before Chloe Kelly scored the winning kick.

    Source: UEFA Women's Euro history · recall

  7. 2027 Women's WC will be hosted by Brazil — first WC in South America. Announced 2024.

    Source: FIFA Women's WC history · recall

  8. The same 32 the 2023 edition used. The men's tournament moves to 48 in 2026.

    Source: FIFA Women's World Cup history · recall

  9. The women's competition followed the men's into a Swiss-model league phase, with every club playing six different opponents.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

  10. Stina Blackstenius scored the only goal against Barcelona; Arsenal's previous European crown had come in 2007, and the trophy has gone to no other English side.

    Source: UEFA Women's Champions League history · recall

Test 10The Olympic tournamentTake a test

  1. Eight teams took part and the United States won gold in front of 76,000 in Athens, Georgia.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  2. The men's competition is for under-23 squads with three older players; the women's is a full senior tournament, which is why it ranks close to the World Cup.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  3. Five golds, from 1996, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2024. Norway, Germany and Canada have one each.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  4. A 1-0 win in Paris through Mallory Swanson. It was Brazil's third Olympic final defeat and Marta's last match at the Games.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  5. Canada beat Sweden on penalties after a 1-1 draw, their first gold after two bronze medals.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  6. The International Olympic Committee recognises Great Britain, not its four football associations, which is why the team appears only occasionally.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  7. Three overage players are allowed, which is how figures such as Ronaldinho and Dani Alves have played at the Games.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  8. Brazil beat Germany on penalties at the Maracana, Neymar scoring the decisive kick for the country's first Olympic football gold.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  9. Marta was sent off in the group stage and returned for the final, which Brazil lost 1-0 in her last Olympic appearance.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

  10. Between 1996 and the 2010s it drew crowds and broadcast attention the Women's World Cup had not yet reached, which is why an Olympic gold still carries weight.

    Source: Football history and competition records · recall

Sources

FIFA / UEFA / CONMEBOL / CAF / national FA official records

  • Women's football history18
  • FIFA Women's WC history13
  • US Women's Soccer history12
  • Football history and competition records10
  • Women's football awards6
  • UEFA Women's Champions League history6
  • UEFA Women's Champions League records5
  • WSL history4
  • Women's Olympic football history3
  • FIFA Women's WC records3
  • Barcelona Femení history3
  • US Women's Soccer records2
  • Liga F history2
  • Liga F records2
  • Germany Women's football2
  • UEFA Women's Euro history2
  • US Women's Soccer awards1
  • England Women's football1
  • Sweden Women's football1
  • Netherlands Women's football1
  • Australia Women's football1
  • Spain Women's football1
  • FIFA Women's World Cup history1