02 · Why White Rose
Why now?
Across participation, attendance, broadcast and commercial investment, women’s sport in the United Kingdom has moved from the margins to the mainstream. The infrastructure supporting it has not kept pace.
Market context
Women’s sport is no longer a niche market
Directional market commentary. The specific figures set out below are attributed to their originating organisations.
One of the fastest-growing sectors
Women’s sport has outpaced almost every other area of British sport for growth in the past decade.
Increasingly attractive to sponsors
Brands are seeking credible, values-aligned properties in women’s sport rather than residual inventory.
Record participation
More women and girls are playing organised sport than at any previously recorded point.
Record media coverage
Dedicated broadcast slots and rights deals have moved women’s fixtures into prime-time schedules.
Demand for better facilities
Growth has exposed a shortage of environments designed around women and girls from the outset.
Investment from governing bodies
National governing bodies are directing strategy and funding towards the female game.
Evidence · Football
Women’s and girls’ football is growing rapidly
Participation, coaching and officiating have all risen sharply. Demand is now moving beyond simply playing, towards high-quality coaching, facilities and performance environments.
56%
Increase in women and girls playing
88%
Increase in female coaches
113%
Increase in female referees
90%
Of schools offering girls equal access in PE
Equal access in PE
The FA reached its target of 90% of schools offering girls equal access to football three years early.
The Lionesses effect
Searches for girls’ playing opportunities surged following England’s UEFA Women’s EURO success, converting national visibility into local demand. That demand now needs somewhere to go: coaching quality, year-round surfaces and performance support are the constraint, not enthusiasm.
Source: England Football / The Football Association, participation and ‘Made for This Game’ reporting.
Evidence · Rugby
Women’s rugby is growing too
The women’s game is in a sustained growth phase, with age-grade registration numbers rising markedly through the World Cup legacy period.
17,700
2022
23,900
2025
+35%Growth in female age-grade players
Audiences and participation in the women’s game continue to rise, creating demand for female-friendly environments and clearer player pathways.
White Rose supports the next phase of that growth through facilities and pathway infrastructure, rather than by adding another competition.
Source: Rugby Football Union, Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 legacy programme reporting (2022–2025).
Evidence · Fitness environments
Why many women want a different kind of gym
Published research and search behaviour point consistently in one direction: a substantial proportion of women want the option of training away from mixed environments.
60%
Report harassment in mixed gyms
of women say they have experienced harassment in a mixed gym environment.
40%
Avoid gyms altogether
of women avoid gyms because they feel uncomfortable around men.
~70%
Rise in search interest
approximate 12-month increase in searches for ‘women’s gym’.
1 in 3+
Would prefer the option
more than a third of women say they would prefer a women-only gym to be available.
~40%
See a personal benefit
believe they would personally benefit from women-only fitness environments.
21m+
TikTok views
#WomensOnlyGym views, indicating sustained public interest.
This is why White Rose includes a dedicated Women’s Gym
The Women’s Gym is a dedicated women’s facility within a wider destination. The café, restaurant, rooftop club, conference suite, education spaces and family areas serve everyone.
Sources: Women’s Health, UK gym-sector survey reporting, and published search-trend and social-platform data.
The problem
The barriers that still stop women and girls taking part
Participation research points repeatedly to the same set of obstacles. They are practical as often as they are cultural, and most are addressed by design rather than by encouragement.
- Confidence
- Lack of facilities
- Intimidation
- Harassment
- Limited female-specific spaces
- Limited performance pathways
- Coaching representation
- Accessibility
- Family commitments
- Cost
- Limited local opportunity
How the Institute helps remove them
A dedicated Women’s Gym, women’s training and play across the gyms and pitches, a crèche, a single accessible location, flexible membership, female coaching pathways and a clear performance route. No single facility solves every challenge, but each of these barriers is addressed deliberately in the brief.
Themes drawn from published participation research including Sport England and Women in Sport commentary.
Regional opportunity
Why Hull and East Yorkshire
A substantial catchment, established grassroots activity and no comparable dedicated women’s performance destination in the region.
Grassroots strength
Established club, school and college football and rugby activity across Hull and the East Riding.
Growth in women’s football
Local girls’ and women’s teams continue to form and grow, following the national trend.
Growth in women’s rugby
Both codes of rugby are long established in the area, with a growing female playing base.
Schools and universities
A dense network of secondary schools, colleges and higher education within easy reach.
Accessibility
A single site reachable by road from across the city and the wider East Riding.
Regional performance hub
No comparable dedicated women’s performance destination currently exists in the region.
Qualitative regional assessment. No local participation statistics are claimed.
The opportunity
One demand curve, many connected revenue streams
Growth in women’s sport does not create a single product. It creates a connected ecosystem in which each activity generates demand for the next.
Membership
- Women’s Gym memberships
- Strength and conditioning
- Corporate wellbeing
Daytime and evening utilisation, all week.
Pathway
- Football academies
- Rugby academies
- Private coaching
Evenings, weekends and school holidays.
Clinical
- Physiotherapy
- Recovery services
- Testing and analysis
Weekday daytime, referral and private.
Audience
- Camps and events
- Community programmes
- Education and sponsorship
Seasonal peaks and contracted partnerships.
Each stream feeds the next: participation creates pathway demand, pathway creates clinical and education demand, and audience creates sponsorship and hospitality value. Illustrative commercial framework for discussion; no revenue forecasts are presented.
Evidence base
Sources and how this evidence is used
Every figure on this page is drawn from published reporting by recognised organisations. Where robust local data is not publicly available, the opportunity is described qualitatively rather than quantified.
| Organisation | Evidence used |
|---|---|
| England Football / The Football Association | Growth in women and girls playing, female coaches and female referees; equal access to football in PE and the 90% of schools target; post-EURO demand. |
| Rugby Football Union | Female age-grade registrations in England, 2022 to 2025, reported through the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 legacy programme. |
| Women’s Health and UK gym-sector survey reporting | Experience of harassment in mixed gyms, avoidance of mixed environments, and stated preference for women-only provision. |
| Published search-trend and social-platform data | Increase in search interest for women-only gyms and #WomensOnlyGym view counts. |
| Sport England and Women in Sport commentary | Recognised barriers to participation among women and girls. |