With the Adobe Women’s FA Cup well underway, and our second season as the lead sponsor, I can’t help but feel a surge of excitement as the competition unfolds. The thought of an amateur team being drawn against one of the biggest clubs in the country makes this prestigious competition so spectacular and it’s one of the many reasons why I first fell in love with football – anyone can win.
Our multi-year agreement with The Football Association brought together two of my biggest passions, championing Adobe’s mission for Creativity for All so everyone can share their stories with the world, and my love for football. Since 2019, the competition has seen a 70 percent increase in participation – a massive achievement reflecting the huge progress and growth of the competition from when it was first established in 1971.
From the start, our goal was simple, to support clubs at all levels – from amateur to elite – and to spread the magic of the women’s game to as many people as possible. To learn how best we could support clubs participating in the competition, we asked them about the challenges they faced in the content creation process. We learned that a lack of personnel and reliance on volunteers are among their biggest barriers and that social media accounts are run by volunteers who have other responsibilities.
We therefore immediately gave all clubs complimentary access to Adobe Express Premium plans so anyone creating content could use the app to promote club matches throughout the season, as well as produce any content they need for marketing and social channels.
As we prepare to see some knockout football, we’re proud to extend our support to amateur clubs by becoming lead partner for the independent and culturally rich club, Camden Town Women’s Football Club (WFC).
Camden Town WFC: Kit and creative caboodle
Camden Town WFC is based in an iconic part of London, core to the UK creative industries and just a stone's throw away from our London Shoreditch office. We’ll be working with the team to make them a creative powerhouse, helping them achieve their ambitions on and off the pitch, which includes creating new pathways for women and girls into football.
We’ll be doing this by supporting the team in several ways and one of the most exciting is the redesign of their kits. Despite the growth of women’s sport in recent years, many women’s amateur football clubs don’t have access to, or the funds available, to design and purchase kits made for the needs of women players. To tackle this head-on and ensure the team was ready for the start of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup, we partnered with VERSUS, a media platform championing the future of football and Creative Director, Hattie Crowther to redesign the club’s kit and crest.
VERSUS followed the process of the club’s kit redesign (coming soon to Instagram and TikTok) which will show the process Hattie followed to consult players to ensure the new kits not only looked great but were also optimised with performance and comfort in mind. Alessia Russo, Adobe Ambassador and Arsenal striker, also made a special appearance during the kit reveal! Fans who turned out yesterday to cheer the team on would have watched the club take on Bexhill United, winning an incredible 9-0 in the first-round qualifiers.