Why collaboration is key to the growth of women’s football in South America

• Importance of collaborating with internal and external stakeholders

• Why co-creating a strategy helps build trust and commitment

• How external partners can bring unique perspectives

“In South America, the development of women’s football requires a very co-ordinated effort because the ecosystem is still growing and responsibilities are shared across many actors,” explains Franchi, who recently graduated from the FIFA Technical Leadership Diploma.

“Within CONMEBOL, we work closely across almost all departments – competitions, refereeing, development, education, marketing, commercial, communications – to ensure that women’s football is integrated into the broader football strategy rather than developed in isolation.”

Collaboration with South America’s ten Member Associations has been achieved through a women’s football strategy and a task force created with representatives from different CONMEBOL areas and countries.

“Through this group we are building a shared roadmap for the development of the game in the region,” she explains. “This includes working together on topics such as coach education, competitions, governance and professionalisation.”

Franchi believes that collaboration will help women’s football in South America grow further than a small group of people working in isolation.

“Inside the organisation, it helps align different teams around the same objective,” she explains. “When departments like competitions, development, HR, refereeing or communications are working in the same direction, initiatives become stronger and easier to develop and sustain over time.

“With external partners, collaboration brings different knowledge and perspectives. Our Member Associations understand the local realities of their countries, while international partners often contribute experience, technical expertise and new ideas.”

How collaboration helps build trust and commitment are two big advantages of this approach, believes Franchi.  “When people feel part of the process and contribute to the strategy, they are much more motivated to make it work and support its long-term success.”

Co-creating a women’s football strategy alongside Member Associations is one example of how CONMEBOL has built trust with their stakeholders, explains Franchi.

“Our approach has been built around a long-term vision for the development of women’s football in South America,” she says.  “The first step was to listen carefully and understand the reality of each Member Association. The region is very diverse, so it was important to shape a strategy that reflects different stages of development and capacities across the countries.”

“From there, we created a task force with representatives from all CONMEBOL areas. It was a dedicated working group that brought together the key internal stakeholders to focus specifically on the growth of women’s football.

“Over the course of a year, we worked together to identify priorities – such as strengthening youth competitions, supporting the development of coaches and technical staff, improving governance structures, and creating more opportunities for girls to play.

“This collaborative process has been very important. It allowed us to bring different perspectives to the table and ensure that the strategy was not only well designed but also supported by the people responsible for implementing it.”

For other organisations that are creating a strategic vision, taking time for stakeholders to input and fully understand the direction is a crucial part of the process, believes Franchi.

“One piece of advice I would share is to take the time at the beginning to build a shared understanding of the vision,” she explains. “Sometimes we assume everyone sees the goal in the same way, but, in reality, each organisation or partner may interpret it differently. Spending time aligning that vision – and sometimes even building it together – can take patience at first, but it saves a lot of time and misunderstanding later.

“Another important aspect is listening,” she adds. “Effective collaboration starts by understanding the realities, priorities and constraints of your partners. When people feel heard, they are much more willing to engage and contribute.”

By focusing on building trust and relationships, instead of only focusing on delivering projects, trust between groups can be developed.  “When trust exists, collaboration becomes much easier, and partners are more open to sharing ideas, solving challenges together and moving forward with a common purpose,” added Franchi. “For me, collaboration is one of the most powerful tools we have to accelerate the growth of women’s football.”

• How often do you co-create with your stakeholders when working on a project?

• How much time do you spend aligning a vision with key people at the start of a project?

• Which external stakeholders could offer a unique perspective on one of your current projects?