Women's soccer is one of the world's fastest-growing sports but has been subjected to little academic scrutiny. This collection considers women's football in a global context and analyses its progress, and the challenges and problems it has faced. It shows how women's football has made a significant contribution to the emancipation of women's football in many countries. It also traces the evolution of women's football in face of resistance, rejection and prejudice and describes women footballer's struggle for equal rights in a male dominated football world. Published to coincide with the Women's World Cup in the USA, which begins in September 2003 in Atlanta, this is the first in-depth global study of women's football in 15 countries across the world.