Susan Alberti (left) and Debbie Lee were pivotal to the formation of the national women's AFL competition. Melbourne Football Club

When it kicks off in 2017 the national women’s football league will include eight AFL teams from five states, with at least another five likely to follow soon after. The national competition is the culmination of decades of work by women’s football associations around Australia. These have steadily grown and overcome ignorance and discrimination to gain greater acceptance.

On this episode of Change Agents Andrew Dodd talks to veteran footballer Debbie Lee, who is the community manager at the Melbourne Football Club, and businesswoman Susan Alberti, the vice president of the Western Bulldogs, about how they made the national women’s league a reality.

Change Agents is a collaboration between The Conversation and the Swinburne Business School and Swinburne University’s Department of Media and Communication. It is presented by Andrew Dodd and produced by Samuel Wilson and Andrew Dodd, with production by Heather Jarvis.

Special thanks to the Melbourne Football Club for providing the photo of Susan Alberti and Debbie Lee, taken at the announcement of the national women’s football league, June 15, 2016.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.