JULY SAW A pivotal moment for Ireland’s women’s football team: their first World Cup goal.

The team’s qualification for the tournament was significant in itself, and a sign of how far the team has come in a few short years.

Despite their best efforts, the team failed to make it out of the group stages in Australia and returned to Ireland without a single win.

But regardless of the results, what type of impact will Ireland’s mere participation in the World Cup have? Are we witnessing a seachange moment for women’s sport, or will old issues still weigh it down?

This week on The Explainer, we’re joined by The 42′s Gavin Cooney to look back on the campaign Down Under and explore where the team can go from here.

What does their performance say about how the future of the team? And did they catch the public’s imagination enough to keep the fanbase growing from here? And more widely, is enough being done by sports organisations to support women in sport? 

https://soundcloud.com/the-explainer-podcast/what-next-for-irelands-womens-football-team/s-CFCiv2xmBvv?si=8927f430de2242bb8a604bf2d690d1cb&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

This episode was put together by presenter Laura Byrne, senior producer Nicky Ryan and executive producer Sinéad O’Carroll.