LockerRoom: FIFA’s female coaching rule matters for Aotearoa

FIFA’s female coaching rule matters for Aotearoa. Representation in leadership is not optional. It’s essential.

Under the new FIFA regulations announced last week, at least two staff members on the bench at women’s football tournaments must be women, including at least one in a head or assistant coach role.

For WISPA, this moment reflects exactly why we exist. We work to transform society through leadership, advocacy and research so women and girls can not only participate in sport, but lead it.

The reality, in Aotearoa New Zealand and globally, is women remain underrepresented in coaching across the board. At the elite level, only 13 percent of coaches at the 2024 Summer Olympics were women. Across 28 sports in Aotearoa, the latest available data shows there are just four women in top high performance leadership roles, and fewer than a quarter of high performance coaches are women.

This isn’t a pipeline problem. It’s a system problem.

How can we change the system?

Read how from WISPA Board members Louisa Wall and Prof. Sarah Leberman in the LockerRoom article here.

Article originally published by LockerRoom 24 March 2026.