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Fans are a powerful force in football. They helped to bring down Jose Mourinho at Manchester United, led the march against their club’s owner at Chelsea and have pushed back against plans to commercialize the sport. They also caused clubs to change their mind over the coronavirus pandemic and protested at a plan to increase the most expensive ticket at Anfield.

The fight against discrimination against Les Hijabeuses shows that fan activism is far from a fad and has a deep and long history in the game. It is a fight that should not be ignored.

As the story of Tottenham Hotspur’s takeover demonstrates, fans can play an important role in the governance of their clubs and can influence their direction. But if they are to do so, they must find ways to speak out without inflaming the authorities or alienating their own supporters.

During the Civil Rights Movement, Black fans used their fandom as a political weapon to protest segregated seating and discrimination at their local sports arenas. They held boycotts, plastered their communities with signs and hung banners at stadiums. They were supported by Black sportswriters, such as Jim Hall, who kept fans up to date on the latest boycotts and encouraged them to make their voices heard.

Gender equality in sports can be seen by the increased participation of women in sport and by the rise of female role models, including coaches. However, gender inequality is still prevalent when it comes to the way athletes are treated and how they are represented.

When a convicted rapist represents his country in Paris, or the BBC hires a pundit who has shared posts by misogynist Andrew Tate, it is clear that not only are these individuals far from being role models for young girls but also show the level of tolerance for abuse and harassment against women in sport. These incidents undermine the commitment of the IOC, national selection committees and the media to creating safe and abuse-free sporting environments.

There are significant gains to be celebrated, such as the fact that women now make up more than half of the world’s professional footballers and that there is now a push for more female leadership roles in coaching and management in all sports. A growing number of organisations now pay their male and female players the same and the 2023 Women’s World Cup was watched by over a billion people.

Ultimately, however, it will take more than just changing pay and increasing visibility to achieve true gender equality in sport. Educating men on why they should support women in sports, challenging norms around household responsibilities and unpaid care work (which is three times more than for men) and giving equal priority to sport for all will be key to breaking down the barriers that prevent women from getting involved.

Rare is the major tournament that does not have a few aggrieved teams wondering what might have been. The 2025 World Test Championship final, staged at Lord’s, was no different.

South Africa’s win, capped off by a Temba Bavuma century, ended 27 years of tournament heartache for the Proteas and was celebrated as a victory for cricket’s “smaller” teams, those outside the so-called Big Three of England, India and Australia. That’s probably a fair assessment.

But the fact that the tournament is an absolute mess, a sticking-plaster that has undermined the credibility of its biannual showpiece, and appears rankly unfair — particularly to teams that play more test cricket and regularly face stronger opponents — makes it hard for any champion to emerge from this mess. That is why Wisden’s Almanack recently excoriated the ICC for what it called a ‘shambles masquerading as a showpiece’.

The problem stems from the way in which the ICC ranks its teams. Under the current system, each team gets 12 points for a win, six for a tie and four for a draw. Richer nations such as Australia, England and India, who often play five-Test series, can find themselves at a disadvantage because those matches are likely to be more high-quality, exciting and profitable.

Other issues include the exclusion of cricket’s full member nations Afghanistan, Ireland and Zimbabwe, and proposals to add divisions with relegation and promotion. Those proposals were discussed at a recent ICC meeting but no changes have been made.