The countdown to the 2023 Women’s World Cup is officially underway and excitement is building across the globe. The tournament, which begins on 20 July, will see the Lionesses looking to challenge last year’s champions the USA following their historic Euros win in 2022.

But until the action begins and Leah Williamson, Chloe Kelly and co are back on our screens, all eyes are on what they will be wearing… and, for once, that’s a good thing.

England’s own new-look home and away kits were announced earlier this week and featured dark blue shorts in both variations, a move that has been praised as an important step towards menstrual equity in sport.

Following lobbying from senior squad members including striker Beth Mead, the Football Association made the decision to switch the colour from white.

After the European Championships last summer, Mead says she spoke to Nike, England’s kit manufacturer, about the problem, saying: “It’s very nice to have an all-white kit, but sometimes it’s not practical when it’s that time of the month.

“We deal with [menstruation] as best as we can but we discussed the shorts issue together as a team and fed our views through to Nike.”

Co-hosts New Zealand are also set to make the same switch, with Australian kits for the Matildas actually integrating period underwear into the shorts for the first time.

The Australian design, backed by women’s research and athlete feedback, integrate “leak protection” into the shorts with a combination of a laminate gusset, liner and short construction.

The perceived opposition between menstruation and sport isn’t new.  A survey conducted by The Youth Sport Trust in 2021 found that 37% of girls have avoided taking part in school sport activities because of their periods, despite the fact that moderate-intensity exercises have been found to reduce bloating and the pain of cramping. A separate research paper in the Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal also confirmed that 34% of women have avoided physical activity during their period – with stigma and embarrassment noted as reasons why.

The rest of the sporting world is long overdue a shake-up, too.

Last year, protestors took to Wimbledon wearing custom-made skirts with a ‘red blood’ skort underlayer to emphasise the difficulty of wearing white clothing – which is required under the tournament’s archaic” all-white dress code – for people who menstruate. 

Previously, former Olympic champion Monica Puig had confirmed that the rule is “definitely something that affects female athletes”.

“Finally bringing it to everyone’s attention! Not to mention the mental stress of having to wear all white at Wimbledon and praying not to have your period during those two weeks,” she tweeted.

With menstrual leave being granted in countries like Spain and developments in menstrual wellness products, we’re certainly making strides towards period equality and equity.

But as the Lionesses rightfully pointed out in their open letter to the government demanding equal access to school sports for girls: “This is just the beginning.”

Images: Getty