​New research revealed on female sporting role models

Armagh Ladies duo Caroline O'Hanlon and Aimee Mackin. Pic: SportsfileArmagh Ladies duo Caroline O'Hanlon and Aimee Mackin. Pic: Sportsfile
Armagh Ladies duo Caroline O'Hanlon and Aimee Mackin. Pic: Sportsfile
​Lidl Ireland and the Ladies Gaelic Football Association (LGFA) launched the 2025 Lidl National Football League season this week and unveiled striking new research spotlighting the importance of developing and elevating Irish female sporting role models for the positive impact they can have on individuals, society and their sport.

Continuing the momentum of Lidl and LGFA’s hard-hitting ‘Get Behind the Fight’ campaign, new research conducted by Red C in November 2024 revealed the need for more high-profile female players in sport as 42% of the Irish public said they would be more likely to attend a women’s sporting event in person if someone well-known was playing.

However, the challenge of player visibility and audience connection remains, with 43% believing that not knowing anyone who is playing is a barrier to attending a female sports event – an increase from 33% of respondents surveyed in Lidl’s 2023 research study – illustrating the growing importance of raising the profile of female athletes to attract fans.

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The unveiling of this new research comes with the 2025 Lidl National Leagues about to get underway.

Saturday January 25 marks the start of the Division 1 season and the opening game is one to savour, as TG4 All-Ireland Senior champions Kerry take on Armagh, the 2024 Lidl National League Division 1 winners, at Austin Stack Park, Tralee. That game, scheduled for 1.30pm, will be broadcast live on TG4. On January 26 Down take on Limerick in Division 3.

The 2025 Lidl National Leagues will conclude across the weekend of Saturday/Sunday April 12/13, with the Finals across the four Divisions. TG4 will provide live coverage of the Divisions 1 and 2 Finals from Croke Park on Saturday April 12, while the Divisions 3 and 4 deciders will be available to view live on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel on Sunday April 13.

Challenging Societal Norms

Thinking about the challenges facing LGFA players specifically in elevating their public profiles, a quarter of current inter-county players (24%) surveyed say that gender issues and cultural or societal norms – such as prioritising male sport over female sport - is the most significant barrier.

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This is reflected in the public’s behaviour and attitudes towards female sport. When asked about the reasons for not attending women’s sporting events, the majority of the public say they still prefer to go to men’s sporting events (51%) whilst almost a quarter (23%) believe the women’s game isn’t as important as the men’s.

Recognising this status quo however, the Irish public believe that challenging societal norms is crucial in levelling the playing field for women, both on and off the pitch. Two thirds of the Irish public (66%) said that having female sporting role models encourages equality, 56% say they encourage diversity and inclusion in society and over half (56%) say it contributes to smashing gender inequality within sport specifically.

Importance of Female Role Models

When thinking about the importance of sporting role models, over half of Irish adults (57%) say they had one growing up, with Sonia O’Sullivan being the most popular hero, inspiring almost one in ten respondents. As parents, men are more likely than women to believe that having a female sporting role model is important for their sons (54% men, 46% women) and daughters (61% men, 58% women) growing up.

Parent’s understanding of the impact on children of Irish female sporting role models saw a broad spectrum of benefits – from encouraging a healthy lifestyle for kids (57%), positive mental health (48%) and positive body image (46%); to essential life skills such as instilling teamwork (49%), good work ethic (44%) and leadership skills (37%). Female sporting role models were also deemed to promote equality (55%) and representation within their community (34%).

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Recognising the importance of role models within LGFA itself, 100% of inter-county players agree that having LGFA role models are important with over half (58%) believing they can help raise the profile of the sport, but 43% of inter-county players do not currently consider themselves to be role models.

Growing up, 37% of LGFA inter-county players surveyed said they looked to male sports stars as their role models, but just 2% say they currently have a male sports role model now that they are older, highlighting the changing needs for women in sport and the importance of inspirational female athletes throughout a player’s career.

At 27%, Katie Taylor was the most cited female sportsperson who inspired our inter county stars own sporting careers. Closer to the game, players named Cora Staunton, Vicki Wall and Caroline O’Hanlon as the local LGFA stars that inspired them to compete at the highest level.

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