Everyone Needs a Squad
As excitement built ahead of the Women’s Euros, EE wanted to explore a bigger question around the role football plays in young women’s lives. Not just on the pitch, but in helping teenage girls navigate the pressures of the online world.
Supporting Pitch Marketing Group, BF Media took the campaign from start to finish. We led the research, shaped the story, and delivered it to national broadcasters at the moment interest in women’s football was peaking.
The Result
Pieces of National Coverage
Pieces of Coverage
Reach
The Idea: Football as a Social Connector
Rather than positioning the story purely as sport, we reframed football as something far more powerful for teenage girls. A network that provides friendship, confidence and support when dealing with challenges online.
To explore this, we commissioned research among more than 4,000 girls aged 13 to 18, comparing those who were part of a football community with those who were not.
The findings were clear. Girls involved in football networks reported stronger confidence, a greater sense of belonging, and higher emotional resilience when facing negative experiences on social media.
Voices That Brought the Story to Life
To ensure the research resonated with broadcasters and audiences, we built a strong mix of expert insight and lived experience.
Kelly Smith MBE
England and Arsenal legend who fronted the campaign, bringing credibility and visibility as the Women’s Euros began.
Dr Sheila Redfern
Adolescent psychologist who helped shape the research and explain why belonging to a football community can build emotional resilience.
Alicia
An 18 year old footballer who shared first hand how being part of a football network helped her deal with the pressures of social media.
Together they created a compelling broadcast line up that combined research, expertise and real world experience.
Timing the Story With the Women’s Euros
Interviews were scheduled on the day the Women’s Euros kicked off, ensuring the story landed as football dominated the national conversation.
By linking the research to the wider cultural moment, the campaign reframed the tournament as more than just sport. It became a conversation about confidence, community and the role football can play in helping young girls thrive.
The campaign also marked the first deployment of Amplify, BF Media’s newswire service, helping extend the story across broadcast, print and online outlets nationwide.
