The tipping point came in 2015. The players had endured enough. They refused to board a plane to the United States. From chaos came change. That change set in motion the path to equality:the establishment of a W-League Collective Bargaining Agreement which,for the first time,guaranteed minimum standards,including salary;governance reform that ensured the full participation of women at all levels of football decision-making;and,finally,a world-first National Team pay equity model that created a vision of what women’s football might look like across the globe.

With the 2023 Women’s World Cup coming to Australia,football has a beacon,a light guiding our continued path towards genuine equality.

The immediate challenge for football is how we ensure that this light remains bright. We will need to balance football’s social responsibility to this mission with its economic capabilities. Striking this balance effectively will determine the impact of the economic downturn on our most vulnerable and undervalued participants,women footballers. The World Cup must be a catalyst for investment that ensures the future for women’s football is front of mind for all decision-makers.

The decisions that follow Friday's announcement are those that will truly demonstrate the depth of our commitment to women in football.

Gender equality should not be only a foundational principle but also an active part of the game’s narrative,where we proactively identify and articulate the role of women in football and the value they contribute. An opportunity exists to embed this ethos across the entire football community and create a new normal - a normal in which women footballers no longer have to fight for opportunity,fairness and a voice but that these values are self-evident.

If we don’t build our game in line with these principles,we are choosing to regress. We are choosing to neglect. We are choosing to lose football’s inherent competitive advantage across football codes. We will be using the Women’s World Cup as a sign of false hope. We will once again reinforce that a career as a women’s footballer lacks legitimacy and dignity. We will be robbing young female players of aspiration and of a pathway to transform their lives.

The changes that we have made on the path to equality within football weren’t due to luck. They were driven by strong,courageous and fierce advocates,who believed that the future of the entire sport was anchored in a deep and genuine commitment to both women’s football and women in football.

Hosting the 2023 World Cup is our reward. But it is only the first step.

Kate Gill played 81 games for the Matildas between 2004 and 2015. She won the 2010 Asian Cup with Australia,was named Asia's player of the year in 2010 and is now the deputy chief executive of the players'union,the PFA.