We all know that Greater Manchester is the true home of football in the UK but, according to the latest research, the borough of Wigan specifically is also the best place for girls to get into the beautiful game.
That’s right, as the women’s game continues to flourish all over the country and the football-mad world at large, it appears that some of the biggest pioneers are the sport-loving and pie-eating people of Wigan – yet all the more reason to love the old Lancashire town.
According to a new study by leading football prediction site, FootballWhispers.com, Wigan topped the list when it came to the best places in England for young girls to get into football.
Looking at data taken directly from the Football Association (FA) regarding football clubs with teams for girls aged 5-19 and ONS population data, it wasn’t hard for the analysis to pull up a result when it came to the towns and cities with the most available clubs catering for young female players.
Utilising parameters such as clubs per 1,000 girls of the specified age range and teams within a commutable distance of 20 miles for parents ranked as the best places for girls to get into football, the predictors were able to come up with a score.
That being said, it was found that Wiganranks the highest for helping girls get into football; within 20 miles of the Greater Manchester town, there are a total of 709 clubs that meet the criteria of providing football for girls aged 5-19. Access is key.
Speaking of: just as importantly, this result also included both disability and non-disability football, as well as leisure and league-based clubs. This came out as an average of 103.3 clubs per 1,000 girls within the specified age range – the largest proportion of any area nationwide.
This is only further backed up by the recent launch of Wigan Athletic Women, with 2024 marking the first year that the Latics have fielded a female football team.
Elsewhere in the study, the likes of St Albans came in just shy of Wigan as the second-best spot for budding young female footballers.
However, the data only gets better for Greater Manchester as Bury came in at number three, boasting 641 clubs offering girls’ football – a score of 86.9 per 1,000 girls aged 5-19 in the town.
You can see the rest of the top 10 down below:
Rank
Town/City
Clubs within 20-mile radius
Clubs per 1,000 girls aged 5-19
1
Wigan
709
103.3
2
St Albans
728
99.8
3
Bury
641
86.9
4
Woking
548
84.2
5
Tamworth
477
73.8
6
Hemel Hempstead
595
70.9
7
Watford
851
70.5
8
Harlow
601
69.1
9
Royal Sutton Coldfield
522
67.7
10
St Helens
602
67.2
Just like in the Super League, Wigan are the top of the table.
Julien Josset, CEO of Football Whispers, commented on the study: “The popularity of women’s football has skyrocketed in recent years. Thankfully, the sport is becoming increasingly accessible to girls around the world and, particularly, in England.
“With this and what it could mean for England’s future female international representation, it’s interesting to see the areas where it’s easiest to get budding young female players on the pitch.”
So, if you or someone you know is a young girl looking to get into football, they won’t go far wrong looking around Wigan way.
Rest assured, the beautiful game is alive and well, and spreading among a new generation over in the likes of WN. You love to see it.
Streamer AngryGinge ‘arrested and banned’ from Silvestone at the British GP
Danny Jones
Popular Manc influencer, ‘AngryGinge’, was arrested, fined and ultimately banned from Silverstone at this year’s British GP.
The Salford-born Twitch streamer, YouTuber and social media personality (real name Morgan Burtwhistle) was detained at the circuit after being arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.
Ginge recently starred in Soccer Aid 2025 and is a well-known face both on the internet and in the sporting world, regularly working in and around football, and is an avid Manchester United – even featuring in the club’s third kit launch video last year.
The 23-year-old and two other fellow streamers, ‘Chazza’ and ‘Samham’, were accused of criminal damage after sitting in an F1 car whilst recording around the Silverstone complex.
AngryGinge returned to streaming after being detained by police for 15 hours
The streamer and several friends were arrested for climbing into a display F1 car at the British Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/WDSYb6MVtj
“On Friday, July 4, NP received a report that a classic Formula 1 car on display at Silverstone Circuit during the British Grand Prix event had sustained several thousands of pounds worth of damage, which was alleged to have been caused by someone accessing the display stand and climbing into the vehicle.
“Officers carried out initial inquiries, and suspects were identified. Three men, aged 23, 25 and 27, were arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage to a vehicle and taken into police custody.
“Following a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the incident, all three men were released with no further action.”
Burtwhistle went into more detail on the incident on socials, explaining that the trio were taken away in handcuffs and “locked up” for several hours – 15 hours, according to SamHam (Samuel Imie).
All three individuals deny causing any damage to the racecar, even despite users sharing clips from the livestream footage captured for the Red Bull online Content on the day that many argue incriminates them, or at least sounds like it – we’ll let you watch and decide for yourselves.
Ginge himself went on to detail that ridculousness of the situation, explaining how he was effectively detained for watching someone else climb into the vehicle.
He’ll be dining out in this one for some time, you can be sure of that.
He’s literally a brands dream isn’t he 😂 so quick and smart with it
Featured Images — Soccer Aid/angryginge13 (screenshot via Twitch)/Samham (via X)
Sport
Boxing legend Ricky Hatton is coming out of retirement after more than a decade
Danny Jones
Mancunian and British boxing legend Ricky Hatton MBE is coming out of retirement after more than a decade for his first competitive fight in 13 long years.
This is sure to be one to watch.
The Stockport-born and Hattersley-raised fighter first retired back in 2011, but did flirt with a comeback a year later in what turned out to be a one-off fight and defeat to 35-year-old Ukrainian welterweight, Vyacheslav Senchenko.
‘Hitman’ Hatton also got back in the ring for an exhibition match against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2022, enduring eight two-minute rounds after a decade away from fighting, but now he’ll be undertaking an official fight over in the United Arab Emirates.
Lacing up his gloves at 46 years old, Hatton will be facing fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah (same age), who was the first professional boxer in the UAE.
The ‘Pride of Hyde’ may have been out of the competitive sporting sphere for a while, but he’s still remained an active figure in the boxing world.
In addition to training his son, Campbell, who has followed in his father’s fighting footsteps, Hatton has continued to coach other young boxing talents from his gym in Tameside, including John Hedges and Chloe Watson.
Campbell, 24, has won 14 of his 16 fights, losing just twice since he began in 2021.
Meanwhile, his dad – who still boasts a record of 45 victories from 48 matches, 32 of which were by knockout – will be once again focusing on getting himself back in fighting shape for the Dubai bout.
The local athlete has done plenty to dispel the old jabs of ‘Ricky Fatton’ in recent times, mind you, having taken his talents as a once-promising young footballer to play in the Manchester Remembers charity match, as well as the aforementioned Barrera exhibition.
Set for this winter, Ricky Hatton will face fellow veteran Eisa Al Dah in a middleweight contest on Friday, 2 December, telling national media via video call in the recent press conference that confirmed he would be coming out of retirement: “What you’re trying to do there for boxing in Dubai is fantastic.”
Meanwhile, Al Dah added: “It will be a true fight, true action. And I will do my best, because everybody in the UAE and the Gulf, they will watch this fight. The place will be sold out, and it will be watched around the world.”
Will those Haymakers still hit like they used to? Well shall see before the end of the year.
Danny Jones -
23rd September 2024 
