Woman Up: Pitches, Pay and Periods: The Progress and Potential of Women’s Football

From the author of ´Unsuitable for Females´, shortlisted for The Sunday Times Football Book of the Year 2023

With the triumph of England’s Lionesses at Euro 2022, the women’s game has been in the spotlight like never before. But this is the result of decades of struggle to get women’s football, banned by the English FA for fifty years, on a more equal footing to its male counterpart. And while the current professional players are starting to reap the rewards of their success on the pitch, their personal journeys have often involved fighting against the odds.

So that a new generation of girls getting involved in football all over the world don’t face the same obstacles as their predecessors, football journalist Carrie Dunn shines a light on the evolution of women’s football and the gender gaps that persist.

Packed with practical advice and first-hand accounts from leading female players, Woman Up is an inspirational, informative, and entertaining account of women’s football’s painful past and its exciting future.

​'One of the most talented and considered minds working in women's football today' Carl Anka, bestselling author

'Shedding light not only on generations of struggle and often unheard of victories and success, but on the issues that women still face today' Christy Lefteri

'It may reflect on some of the most irritating traditions of the game – like disrespect for its female Olympians and World Cup winners and the absence of suitable kit for girls – but you still leave feeling uplifted and optimistic about the future of the sport' Kate Mason

Carrie Dunn is a sportswriter whose recent books include ´The Pride of the Lionesses´, a Football Book of the Year nominee, and ´Unsuitable for Females´, which explores the history of women’s football. She has reported on the last three Women’s World Cups for the Times and Eurosport and is a regular contributor to BBC radio and The Athletic’s Women’s Football Podcast.

© 2025 SAGA Egmont (Ebook): 9788727273327

Release date

Ebook: 3 July 2025