Women's water polo

🏆 The History of Women's Water Polo: From First Splashes to Olympic Triumph (Updated to 2025)

🌊 Origins of Women's Water Polo

Women's water polo was born in the shadow of men's, but its evolution has been as inspiring as it is resilient. While modern water polo developed in England in the late 19th century as a men's aquatic contact game, the first references to the game played by women date back to 1891 in Scotland , where a friendly match was documented.

During the 20th century, women in countries such as the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Hungary, Russia, and Australia began playing water polo in informal settings, primarily in aquatic clubs, albeit with many social and gender-based limitations.

📈 The Fight for Recognition

In the 1960s and 1970s, coinciding with the rise of the women's rights movement, women's water polo began to gain ground. The first unofficial international tournaments were organized, mostly sponsored by national federations and clubs.

1985 : The first FINA Women's World Cup was held, helping to raise the profile of the sport globally.
1986 : Women's water polo was officially included in the World Swimming Championships , marking a key moment for its institutionalization.

These advances were fundamental to achieving its incorporation as an Olympic discipline.

🥇 The Big Leap: Sydney 2000 Olympic Games

After years of international pressure and gender equality campaigns, the IOC approved the inclusion of women's water polo in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games . It was a historic moment:

Six teams participated: Australia (host), USA, Russia, Netherlands, Kazakhstan and Canada.
Australia was crowned champion in a dramatic final against the USA (4-3).

Since then, women's water polo has been present at every Olympic Games, with a progressive increase in the number of teams and competitive level.

🌍 International Evolution: Powers and Leagues

With its consolidation on the Olympic stage, women's water polo saw explosive growth in many regions of the world:

🇺🇸 United States

Absolute dominators since 2012, with gold in London 2012 , Rio 2016 , and Tokyo 2020 .
Led by stars like Maggie Steffens, Ashleigh Johnson and Maddie Musselman.
The NCAA has become one of the strongest training centers on the planet, combining athletic performance with academic training.

🇪🇸 Spain

World champions (2013, 2023), Olympic runners-up in London 2012, and Olympic champions in Paris 2024 .
Big names like Jennifer Pareja, Laura Ester, Maica García and Elena Ruiz have made history.
Its clubs, such as CN Sabadell and CN Sant Andreu , dominate the women's Champions League.

🇮🇹 🇭🇺 🇷🇺 🇳🇱 🇬🇷

Traditional powers with a strong presence in clubs and national teams.
Italy won gold in Athens 2004, Hungary shines in the European Championships, Greece was world champion in 2011, and the Netherlands was Olympic champion in 2008.

📅 2025: A Key Year for Women's Water Polo

The year 2025 has been extraordinary for the competitive and media development of women's water polo:

Spain wins the World Cup in Bucharest with a golden generation led by Elena Ruiz.
CN Sant Andreu surprises by beating Sabadell and winning its first European Champions League.
The Women's Water Polo World Cup will be held in Singapore in July 2025 , with a record number of participating teams, including debutants such as Croatia and the return of Argentina and Japan.
In the NCAA , Stanford wins its tenth national championship, with Ryann Neushul making history as the first player with four college titles.

💪 Technical Development and Professionalization

Today, women's water polo is as physical, fast-paced, and tactical as men's. Technical changes in recent years have boosted the spectacle:

Increased pace of play and reduced possession time (30s → 20s in some phases).
Equalization of ball and field size to men's in several competitions.
Greater media coverage, with streaming broadcasts, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitch.

Furthermore, more and more female players are turning professional, playing in foreign leagues, and becoming media and social icons.

📣 More Visibility, More Inspiration

The rise of women's water polo isn't just reflected in the water. Players have become activists for equality, role models, and content creators.

Development programs, scholarships, and water polo schools for girls are on the rise in countries such as:

Spain (Catalonia, Madrid, Andalusia)
United States (California, Florida)
Australia, Hungary and Greece

Thanks to this development, more and more girls are seeing water polo as a real sporting option.

Here's a point of interest with the women's water polo national team's record: