1st Edition

Women’s Football

Edited By Jacky Forsyth, Claire-Marie Roberts Copyright 2025
258 Pages 12 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

258 Pages 12 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

258 Pages 12 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

The global increase in viewership of and participation in women’s football means that, to continue with this growth, we need to appreciate the specific scientific and health issues that determine successful performance for women.  Women’s Football provides a thorough, yet straightforward and accessible, analysis of the key physiological, biomechanical and social-psychological issues that can be... Read more

1. Global Context and Organisation

Maurizio Valenti and Polly Bancroft

 

2. Advancing Women’s Football Through Strategic Holistic Workforce Development: Payment, Conditions and Policies

Beth G. Clarkson and Ali Bowes

 

3. Match Demands and Physiological Determinants

Naomi Datson, Ross Julian, and Barry Drust

 

4. Talent Identification

Stacey Emmonds, Adam Gledhill, Matthew Wright, and Kevin Till

 

5. The Menstrual Cycle and Hormone-Based Contraception

Kelly Lee McNulty, Paul Ansdell, Amal Hassan, and Kirsty Marie Hicks

 

6. Menstrual Cycle Monitoring, Application and Implementation

Ross Julian, Jonathan Hughes, and Debby Sargent

 

7. Pregnancy and Motherhood

Amal Hassan, Emma Brockwell, Sinead Dufour, Rosalyn Cooke Monica Rho, and Margie Davenport

 

8. Sports Nutrition Needs

Rebecca K. Randell, Ian Rollo, Samantha L. Moss, and Tom Clifford

 

9. Eating Disorders and Elite Women’s Football

Carly Perry, Maria Luisa Fernanda Pereira Vargas, Alex Culvin, and Ali Bowes

 

10. Disordered Eating and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (Red-S): A Case Study

Melissa Streno and Rebecca McConville

 

11. Psychosocial Development and Transitions

Alice Stratford and Francesca Champ

 

12. Mental Health in Professional Women’s Football

Francesca M. Champ and Kristin McGinty-Minister

 

13. Breast Health

Nicola Brown, Melissa Jones, and Joanna Wakefield-Scurr

 

14. Injury Epidemiology

Lawrence Mayhew, Lisa Hodgson, Roar Amundsen, and Solveig Thorarinsdottir

 

15. Concussion

Craig Rosenbloom, Katrine Kryger, Sean Carmody, Ritan Mehta, Charlotte Cowie, Millie Bright, and Daniel Broman

 

16. Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation

Mark De Ste Croix, Francisco Ayala, Ross Julien, Debby Sargent, and Jonathan Hughes

 

17. Reflection And Reflecting on Football Coach Education in Connection with Identity, Process and Practice

Dave Lawrence and Hanya Pielichaty

 

Biography

Jacky Forsyth, PhD is an exercise physiologist, and has worked in various roles in academia, undertaking both teaching and researching. Her main priority and drive in research are about promoting, raising awareness and advancing understanding of the key influences which impact women in sport and exercise. She has published research articles on improving the health and exercise status of pre- and post-menopausal women. She co-founded the Women in Sport and Exercise Academic Network with Claire-Marie Roberts for the purposes of connecting like-minded academics to promote and strengthen research into women in sport and exercise.

 

Claire-Marie Roberts, PhD is a Chartered Psychologist, Chartered Scientist and a BASES Accredited Sport & Exercise Scientist who is the Performance Director at Coventry City Football Club. She has worked in various roles in men’s and women’s professional football for 20 years, including nearly a decade at the Premier League leading transformational change in elite football development. She is a senior research fellow at the University of the West of England, a special advisor to Nike on women athletes, and a Trustee of Restart - the official charity of The Rugby Players Association dedicated to supporting elite men's and women's rugby players suffering from serious injury, illness or hardship. She has published over 40 peer-reviewed research articles and has authored and edited three books.