“Listen, we better turn up for the women”. In a single social media post, football icon Ian Wright managed to turn eight simple words into an incredibly powerful message.Alongside the call to action, Wright shared the details of Arsenal Women’s highly-anticipated clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.The match, set to be the most fiercely-contested North London Derby in the history of women’s football, will be played on the pristine pitch at the Emirates.Around 15,000 spectators are expected to be in the crowd, a similar amount of fans who turned up for Arsenal Women’s fixtures against Chelsea and Barcelona at the 60,000-seater stadium.How many of these spectators will have brought a ticket after being persuaded by Wright’s Twitter post? Given the former Arsenal star has two million Twitter followers, probably quite a few.That’s why the lack of promotion from any of Arsenal’s current male players is so frustrating. Some team members have got involved, including defender Rob Holding, but the vast majority of the squad have remained silent.It’s even more exasperating when considering how little effort it would take to share details of the match at the Emirates, particularly if a player has a PR team handling their social media channels.And just a few seconds of a player’s time could have a massive impact on the growth of women’s football. That may seem far-fetched, but male footballers are among some of the most adored and respected people on the planet.

As with Wright, just one social media post could encourage hundreds of fans to buy tickets to a women’s game.

Once at the match, fans may be sucked into the experience, and realise that being a true fan of a club means supporting all teams, not just the male players. This could lead to an increase in attendances, TV viewing figures and social media following.

Sharing the details of matches is just the start of it. Imagine if male players attended women’s games on a regular basis, and even if just on a one-off occasion, posted about the event on their social media channels.

Again, this would surely encourage fans to follow suit and attend a match. To put it bluntly, prolific figures in men’s football can be instrumental in the promotion of the women’s game.

This is not to say that women’s football is not a fantastic product of its own accord, or something that can not stand on its own two feet.

Just looking at the Women’s Super League table shows how exciting women’s football is, with intense battles taking place for the title, the third and final Champions League place, and in the relegation zone.

But after years spent in the wilderness with no exposure, there’s nothing wrong with a little outside help.

Particularly from male footballers, who are some of the most influential people in society with millions of Twitter followers. If they say women’s football is cool, you best believe it’s cool.

To end on a positive note, there have been brilliant examples of male players using their influence to promote the women’s game.

Manchester United Women are another team with a big match this weekend – they host Everton at Old Trafford, the first time they will play at the stadium with a crowd in attendance.

David De Gea, one of the most well-known goalkeepers in the world, posted a video on Twitter encouraging fans to buy tickets for the match.

“Big game for Mary [Earps] and the team here at Old Trafford on the 27th,” he said. “So I expect all of you to come here to support them and hopefully they can win the game.”

Not all of De Gea’s 13.7 million followers will purchase a ticket, but even if a couple of hundred do, it could well be a couple of hundred more people who become invested in women’s football.

As a result, the public support of male players for women’s football is priceless.

Tickets for Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates can be brought here, while tickets for Manchester United vs Everton can be purchased here.