For more than one year, the German Football Association (DFB) in cooperation with WBlTVP Deutschland filmed the world’s first women’s football documentary series for TV. The series focuses on the players and their very personal stories and backgrounds.

The documentary can be seen on three channels: to reach as many people as possible, ARD, Sky and Magenta TV joined forces in a broadcasting alliance for the first time in German television for a documentary series. They uploaded the documentary “Born for this – mehr als Fußball” (Born for this – more than football) to their media libraries simultaneously on 6 July 2022.

The documentary is a central milestone of the strategy “Women in Football 2027”, which is one of the most important future projects of the DFB. One of the key points of the strategy is raising visibility.

National coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg says: “The Warner team followed us closely, which meant they gained exclusive insights. We are excited about this fantastic project, which will let us show a broad audience who and how we are. Because we have so many great personalities and fascinating stories to tell. This documentary will boost our visibility.”

Holger Blask, Managing Director Marketing & Sales and Spokesperson for DFB GmbH &Co.KG, says: “We are very proud to be the first in the world to show our women’s national team not only from a sporting perspective, but also from the very personal side of the players. What’s more, this fantastic project is a great example of how the DFB and its partners adidas and Volkswagen, who share the same values, embrace the topic of women in football and bring it to life in different ways. We are delighted that ARD, Sky and Telekom are supporting us in reaching and inspiring as many people as possible.”

Filming began in April 2021. Since then, the women’s national team has been accompanied non-stop on its ways to the UEFA WOMEN’S EURO 2022 in England. Filming also continued during the tournament.

The documentary stands out from the multitude of sports documentaries because it also covers the topics of respect and equality. “We at Volkswagen believe that social responsibility means shaping our society together, living by our values and standing up for equality. In football and beyond,” says Elke Heitmüller, Head of Diversity at Volkswagen. The DFB mobility partner has supported the project together with DFB partner adidas from the very beginning.

The documentary is therefore not only interesting for many football fans. “We are very happy to support this documentary. We are particularly looking forward to what are sure to be many emotional moments and exciting insights into the team,” explains Oliver Brücken, PR Director Central Europe adidas.

“We’re switching on a light,” says the directing duo Martina Hänsel and Björn Tanneberger. Above all, they want to tell the players’ stories from off the pitch: “These will let us look deep into their souls; pain is also part of this.”

The composition of the project partners is as special as the project itself. The DFB, ARD, Sky, Magenta TV, Volkswagen, adidas and WBITVP Deutschland have rallied behind the project and are sending out a strong signal and a clear commitment to greater awareness and recognition for women in football.