Alice Soper is a sports columnist for the Herald on Sunday. A former provincial rugby player and current club coach, she has a particular interest in telling stories of the emerging world of women’s sports.
OPINION
It was this 90s child’s dream to see none other than Whoopi Goldberg sit on a talk show couch to announce the launch of AWSN, the All Women’s Sport Network. A new global network dedicated to all women’s sports, all the time. As a fan who has long survived on breadcrumbed coverage, such an offering feels like glorious gluttony. However, whether this network can satiate growing appetites remains to be seen.
It reportedly took 16 years for Goldberg’s vision to be realised in the launch of this endeavour. So much has changed in the world of women’s sports since then. Back in 2008, professional contracts were few and far between. Most coverage for women in this country was limited to netball or pinnacle events like the Olympic Games. This was in part due to feeble international offerings – the launch of the World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series was still four years away.
It’s 2024 now though, and I was overwhelmed as I scrolled across the live women’s options on Sky Sports last weekend. Rugby league, basketball, football, netball and Aussie Rules were all there all competing for eyeballs. Meanwhile, on free-to-air, TVNZ screened premiership hockey and the Women’s Tennis Associations finals. It’s all this sport, already on our screens, that is the first major hurdle for this new network.