Berry said 15 of the 28 sporting organisations were eligible for a 10 per cent funding bonus after achieving their 40 per cent female representation on the board since the initiative started in 2016.

Basketball, soccer, netball, tennis and volleyball are leading the way with women in director positions and Berry wants 13 more organisations to follow the same path.

"Sports are quite a competitive group of people [and] they'll want to keep up with the rest of the pack," Berry said.

"We've got momentum in this country around gender equality and making sure women are rightly represented on sports boards.

"That representation brings more diversity and innovation. But it also gives women and girls a chance to see women represented at their peak sport bodies. That's a really important message, particularly to young girls, about where they could be one day."

Canberra is at the start of a bumper summer of women's sport, which began with the Capitals' title defence and will move into the next gear when Canberra United start their W-League campaign on Sunday.

The women's Big Bash League will roll into the capital on November 27 before the Twenty20 World Cup arrives at Manuka in February.

The Matildas are also set to play a game in Canberra, possibly as early as March, after the FFA committed to bringing international games to the city as part of a $24.5m deal to build a soccer hub at Throsby.

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The Matildas haven't played in Canberra since they beat New Zealand at the AIS Track in 2013. Since then the national team has captured a nation and played in front of more than 10,000 fans in Adelaide earlier this week and in front of 20,029 in Sydney last week.

"You can see that [growth] in football, generally. We know that people really want to engage with women in sport," Berry said. "The momentum is definitely there, we can't be left behind on this."

Former Capitals captain Kellie Henning joined the Basketball ACT board this year to offer her input to help the sport thrive.

She is overseeing the Canberra Nationals and Canberra Gunners and will offer valuable insight as Basketball ACT attempts to reinvigorate its venues.

"It's challenging, for sure. But I was pleased when [chairman] Allan Yates] approached me," Henning said.

"I thought if I could contribute in a positive way, provide some experience from a player's experience ... if I can walk out after two years having made some improvements it's a good thing.

"In my time [in Basketball in Canberra] there hasn't been a female chief executive. To me, it's not about meeting percentages. It's about diversity and having the right skillsets appointed. That's where Basketball ACT is ticking the boxes."

Tennis ACT board member Robyn Hendry added: "It's critical [to have that representation]. Unless they can see that representation in the board room and have their voice heard ... it's imperative.

"Having two girls who play tennis, they would not be satisfied if there weren't women on the board."