Securing women's sports events: lessons for the next generation

Women's sport is having a moment, and business has noticed. Sponsors and broadcasters are investing heavily, stadiums are selling out and the international calendar is filling up ahead of the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Fans want these events to succeed. For organisers, federations and commercial partners, the challenge is delivering consistent events at a greater scale, across more locations and under increasing scrutiny.

This growth brings complexity. Multi-city coverage, compressed production and travel schedules and a threat picture that shifts daily all require careful coordination. In many cases, these demands must be managed with tighter budgets and less-established operating models.

But that's not a reason to do less. Organisers should look to build a smarter, more resilient approach that protects people, operations and reputation while sustaining the momentum behind one of sport’s fastest-growing success stories.

The same demands, a different starting point

As major sporting events continue to evolve, it’s tempting to assume a women’s tournament is a smaller, simpler version of more established showcases. Operationally, this assumption doesn’t hold.

Schedules are just as tight and footprints just as wide. A single tournament can span a dozen host cities across an entire country, each with its own local risk picture. As a result, the threat environment is just as dynamic: 

Women's events can also attract distinct challenges of their own. Where women's sport intersects with wider social and cultural debates, athletes, venues and supporters can become focal points for online hostility, coordinated campaigns or targeted protests. As audiences grow and media attention intensifies, the stakes around any potential incident are significantly raised.

Like any major events, a one-off security assessment isn't enough. Organisers need a live, continuously updated protective intelligence capability that stays embedded within operations from planning through to the final whistle. When circumstances change, players on and off the field need clear guidance they can actually act on. 

Working smarter: the PI/OS model 

This is where the right operating model can help budgets stretch further. Organisations that integrate intelligence with planning through to day-to-day operations gain more value from both. Working as a single function, they share information in real-time and adapt more effectively as events unfold.

Protective Intelligence (PI) provides continuous threat monitoring and analysis, delivering actionable guidance over raw reporting. The value is in the interpretation, not just alerts or a feed.

Operational Security (OS) puts that intelligence to work. Personnel can adjust movements, schedules and operations in response to the picture provided, often working alongside the client's own in-house resources.

Every hour of analysis translates into a decision, route change, schedule adjustment or repositioned resource. Nothing is wasted on reporting for its own sake and security measures are kept proportionate to a fast-moving risk landscape. 

What experience taught us

Control Risks has applied this model for a major rights holder during a major women's football tournament, providing threat monitoring and updates through every stage of the client's operations, from the lead-up through to the tournament itself, across nine host cities and at national level. 

The event was delivered successfully, without major incident. But the more valuable outcome was a set of lessons that continue to shape how the model is applied today: 

That last point matters most for organisations watching their budgets. A repeatable model is an efficient one. You're not reinventing the approach for every tournament, you're scaling a proven one. 

The organisations best placed to operate and partner with major sporting events won't necessarily be the ones spending the most. Women's sport provides a particularly useful example of how a smarter operating model can protect people, operations and reputation while supporting continued growth.

Where to start

For rights holders and broadcasters planning for the next wave of major sporting events , a few priorities stand out: 

Control Risks helps rights holders and broadcasters build protective intelligence that scales across host cities and stays connected to operational decision-making, from the first planning meeting to the final whistle. Get in touch to talk through your next event.