Overview

• Survey of 3,000 women found just 7% currently play team sports and that most quit by age 21.
• Participation plunges into single-digit percentages among women in their 30s, 40s and 50s.
• Respondents cited busy schedules, work commitments, family duties, childcare needs and social anxiety as key hurdles to ongoing involvement.
• Lifecycle events such as pregnancy, menstruation and menopause were each named by 44% of women as reasons for stepping away from team sports.
• AXA UK’s Keep on Kicking campaign uses its UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 sponsorship and support for Women’s Walking Football to re-engage women at elite and grassroots levels.