FIFA Mandates Presence of One female Coach in All Women's Teams

By: WE Staff | Friday, 20 March 2026

• FIFA has announced new regulations pertaining to women’s competitions
• Teams are required to have at least one female head coach or assistant coach
• The new set of regulations seeks to increase female representation in senior coaching positions

FIFA has now introduced new regulations whereby all teams competing in women's competitions under the football governing body must have at least one female head coach or assistant coach.

The regulations are designed to increase the number of women holding senior positions in football coaching.

The new regulations have been approved by the FIFA Council. They are set to come into effect from the forthcoming women's youth competitions. These competitions include the Under-17 and Under-20 World Cups, the Under-17 and Under-20 Cups, and the Women's Championship Cup.

The regulations are also set to come into effect from the forthcoming women's senior competitions. These competitions include the Women's World Cup scheduled for next year in Brazil.

Under the new regulations, every team must have at least two female personnel on the substitutes’ bench. The regulations are set to apply to all women's competitions under FIFA. These competitions range from youth competitions to the women's seniors’ competitions.

FIFA Chief Football Officer Jill Ellis said the regulations are designed to increase the number of women holding positions in football coaching.

12 out of 32 head coaches of national teams in the Women World Cup held in Australia in 2023 are women according to statistics from FIFA.

One of these women is Sarina Wiegman , head coach of the England women's national soccer team. She was the only woman head coach to reach the quarter-final stage of the tournament and finish as a runner-up.

Research from FIFA shows that only 5 percent of all coaches are female across FIFA member associations, including male and female football players and teams.

In addition, FIFA research states that, from all women's leagues around the world (86 total), only 22% of head coaches of women's teams are female (FIFA, 2024, Setting the Pace, p. 4).

According to FIFA, the regulations form a long-term strategy designed to encourage females to become involved with coaching, technical and leadership roles as the global women's football game continues to expand.

FIFA has also expanded support initiatives, including providing scholarship support for women who wish to obtain UEFA Pro or A coaching licenses in the Women's Super-Rugby Divisions 1 and 2.