Jun 5, 2026FIFA launches project to advance health research for female athletes
FIFA has launched a new research initiative called the FIFA Female Health and Performance Project in an effort to address research gaps and provide access to data needed to support the health and development of female athletes.
“FIFA’s aim is to optimize every female footballer’s health, well-being and performance, and to improve knowledge around women and girls in football at every level of the game.” — FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Dame Sarai Bareman
According to FIFA, training methods and systems have historically been shaped by research conducted on male athletes with 6% of sport science research exclusively focused on women. The organization references a study that analyzed 5,261 research articles published in sport and exercise science journals between 2014 and 2020, noting that only 34% of participants were women.
“This means that female footballers and athletes in other sports relied on training and recovery methods, workloads and systems that were developed based on research that did not reflect their physiological characteristics, potentially reducing the efficacy of training and heightening the risk of injury,” FIFA said in a news release announcing the project.
In the lead-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023, the first to feature 32 teams, the organization offered specialized training programs as part of a pilot project that benefited 10 national teams. The launch of the FIFA Female Health and Performance Project now means all 211 FIFA member associations have access to specialized, peer-reviewed, science-based information through its 13 education modules.
The FIFA Female Health and Performance Project education modules cover universal topics in soccer and sports science, such as sleep, recovery and strength and conditioning, all examined through the lens of female athletes. Topics like female physiology, pregnancy, postpartum and menopause are also addressed in the modules. Four levels, from “introduction” to “integrated,” provide information for all audiences.
“FIFA’s aim is to optimize every female footballer’s health, well-being and performance, and to improve knowledge around women and girls in football at every level of the game,” FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Dame Sarai Bareman said. “Collectively, we can do so much more to better support our growing number of female players and ensure they are trained, supported and understood according to their specific needs as women.”
Additionally, the project aims to break taboos, normalize language, eliminate social stigma, encourage open communication and set the benchmark for a supportive environment in which women in sports can thrive.
The project covers the following topics across all four knowledge levels: female physiology, reproductive years, menstrual health tracking, pregnancy and postpartum, fertility, menopause, pelvic health, nutrition, recovery, sleep, strength and conditioning, screening and profiling and injury and injury prevention.
“We need to normalize conversations around female health and embrace this, using it to our advantage instead of ignoring it or being fearful of discussing it,” Bareman said. “It is not a weakness; it is a strength.”
