International Women's Day: Women's football rise in popularity

With International Women's Day on March 8th approaching quickly, it's an excellent opportunity to take a moment to celebrate the progression of the women's game over the last 20 years.

In 1970 Denmark won the first unofficial World Cup for women in Italy. It was only in 1991 that FIFA officially took over the tournament's organisation.

The sport has grown internationally, helped massively by the USA being such a dominating presence globally and putting their top players in the public eye. By the time France hosted the tournament's last edition in 2019, interest was at an all-time high, and over 1.12 billion people tuned in to watch the final between the USA and the Netherlands. The final was the most watched live game ever, with 82 million viewers.

The progress could reach new heights this summer when the World Cup is held in Australia and New Zealand for the first time.

In the UK, the Lionesses' success at Euro 2022 boosted interest even more, and they are one of the favourites to win Down Under. Serena Wiegman, FIFA's Women's Coach of the Year 21/22, has guided the team to greatness.

"I think, obviously, off the back of the Euros, people have put in them as the favourites. And for me, I think they are the team to beat," revealed Emma Sanders, BBC Online journalist.

"They haven't lost a single game under manager Serena Wiegman since she came in at the end of 2021. So an absolutely incredible record. But you obviously can't write off the USA. They've won the last two World Cups, and they've got a massive rivalry with England. They played each other at Wembley at the end of last year, and that was a close encounter. But England came out on top."

Nadia Nadim is one of football's most iconic female players. Nadia was born in