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By Faye Hackwell Today we are celebrating some of the inspirational women in different roles in football who have shown support for Her Game Too over the past year.
Our partners and supporters are crucial in enabling us to fulfil the aims and ambitions of our campaign, and we are taking this opportunity on International Women’s Day to showcase why Her Game Too is important to some of them:
“Women in football have to measure up to a near impossible standard - even perfection isn’t enough for some people,” Robyn Cowen – BBC football commentator.
To regular watchers of Match of the Day and Final Score, Robyn is a familiar face and voice commentating on Premier League and Women’s Super League matches, as well as at major tournaments in men’s and women’s football.
After reading about Her Game Too on social media and speaking at a Her Game Too event at Oxford United, organised by the club’s Her Game Too Ambassador Grace Bailey, Robyn has shown support for the campaign by wearing a Her Game Too hat during some of her television appearances.
A photo of her wearing the hat, which she posted on X in December, at a time when some women working in football media had come under intense scrutiny on social media, was then widely shared and liked.
Robyn said: “Apart from covering up a bad hair day, it’s a great hat!
“That week had been particularly difficult for my colleagues because of social media abuse.
“I had been speaking to a fair few of them who were disheartened by what they were reading and hearing.
“I think it (the hat) was just to highlight to everyone that women in football have to measure up to a near impossible standard, in fact even perfection isn’t enough for some people because their gender means they will never be accepted in the industry.
“It’s a constant anxiety that if you make a mistake it will be highlighted and there will be a pile on - I just wanted to celebrate all the brilliant women who have to put up with so much just to get by.”
Robyn believes organisations like Her Game Too are “extremely important” in ensuring necessary conversations are had.
She added: “There’s a certain section who will never change their minds about how they view women working in or watching football.
“But for those who are unaware, it is so important for them to be supportive and be good allies and call out misogynist behaviour, which seems to have become much more prevalent.”
“I have witnessed firsthand the struggles of women and girls in a sporting environment,” - Shannon Galinson, Co-owner and Director of Gillingham Football Club.
Shannon and her husband Brad took over the Kent club just over a year ago, when the Gills were bottom of League Two and facing relegation out of the Football League.
Fast forward to today, and Gillingham are in playoff contention - beating League Two highflyers Wrexham in their Her Game Too dedicated fixture a fortnight ago.
Shannon praised the “incredibly supportive network” the club has through Her Game Too and the club’s ambassador for the campaign, Paige Collins, when the club celebrated their partnership with Her Game Too at the match.
She said: “Her Game Too embodies the very essence of inclusivity through their important work for women and girls.
“I am grateful for the encouragement, guidance, and honest dialogue they deliver to us as a football club, as we endeavour to make Priestfield a welcoming place for all.
“The Her Game Too movement speaks to me personally because my daughter is an athlete.
“I have witnessed firsthand the struggles of women and girls in a sporting environment.
“What I want for my daughter is what I want for all women and all girls - to find a safe, welcoming space in the world of sport, whether as a player, a supporter, a staff member, or as an official.
“I will do all I can to support that effort both here at Priestfield and in the wider football community.”
“It's important to drive forward inclusion and educate people about the impact of sexism and all forms of discrimination,” - Megan Finnigan, Her Game Too Player Advocate for Everton Women.
As a Women’s Super League player, Megan wants to use her position as a role model to positively influence the next generation.
Everton became the first Premier League club to partner with Her Game Too in December 2021 and, last year, introduced the campaign’s first two top flight Player Advocates in men’s captain Seamus Coleman and women’s defender Gabby George, who Megan then stepped in to replace as a Player Advocate when Gabby left the club last summer.
Megan said: “Having seen the brilliant work Her Game Too do through their partnership with Everton, it was an easy one for me to put myself forward as one of our player advocates.
“I’m often asked about being a role model for the next generation and, as the women’s game has grown in the last few years, I've definitely become more and more aware of the influence we have as professionals and players who kids, in particular, look up to.
“That’s something I’m really proud of, and we talk about it a lot here - using our platform for good.
“As well as inspiring girls and boys to dream about playing football, I think it's as important to drive forward inclusion, educate people about the impact of sexism and all forms of discrimination, and do what we can to ensure everything we love about the game can be enjoyed by everyone.”
“Sadly there are still many struggles and barriers, we have to be the generation of change,” - Vicky Mitchell, Women and Girls Football Development Officer at Birmingham County Football Association.
Vicky and Birmingham County FA have worked in partnership with Her Game Too for two years, collaborating on a number of meetings and opportunities that have raised awareness of the campaign.
Through her role, Vicky works to grow female participation in football in the area and promote the importance of mental health and wellbeing to all involved in the sport.
Reflecting on the partnership with Her Game Too, she said: “Together, we have a reporting system and procedure anyone can utilise when they don’t feel safe, or when they see or hear anything.
“We’ve had a few cases together that we have dealt with and got the best results for those involved - players, coaches, and referees - and I feel our passion to make changes to environments is absolutely on the right route - to get stronger.”
Vicky feels witnessing Her Game Too establish further partnerships with clubs and other organisations in and around Birmingham reflects how well-known and respected the campaign has become.
She added: “Football should feel and look normal to everyone, no matter what game or presenter you are seeing on the TV.
“Sadly, it’s not, and we must change this together.
“Football grows people’s confidence, it grows friendships, it grows awareness and respect of people and their communities, but, more than anything, it should be fun for everyone involved.
“Sadly there are still many struggles and barriers - we have to be the generation of change.”
“Mums come along and, rather than sitting at the side while their daughters play, they join in with the adults’ session,” - Charlotte Galloway, Co-Founder and Director of the Women’s Football Collective (WFC), provider of the Her Game Too Training Centre.
Last summer, Charlotte and her WFC Co-Founder Ryan McGavock presented their ambition to create the first Her Game Too Training Centre to Her Game Too’s directors - and a few months later, that dream became a reality when the first centre opened in Cardiff.
The centre’s weekly sessions are aimed at females of all abilities and cater for a range of ages, enabling women and girls to enjoy football without committing to a team, top up their training time outside of their clubs or try the game for the first time.
Charlotte said: “We’ve had girls join us who’ve had their confidence knocked at the team they play at, beginners in their 40s and 50s able to play football for the first time ever, and people come to us for our goalie-specific sessions.
“But, for me, a stand out highlight has to be seeing mums come along and, rather than sitting at the side while their daughters play, they join in with the adults’ session.
“There’s something for me about knowing they’re going to both be talking about the session they had on the way home – the way I’d tell my mum or dad when they took me home from football – except it’s both of them!
“They can relate to each other’s experiences and mother and daughter can both be excited about training next week, or practice keepy-ups together at the weekend – it’s just special.
“It’s very personal in a way – I’m 30 now so I’ll never have that with my mum, but I can make it happen for other families.
“It’s a way of bringing the older generations of women into the joy of playing football.
“So often, the focus is on kids and talent development centres, so what we’re doing here is really unique and hopefully the first of many for Her Game Too.”
“I feel really lucky to work with some exceptional women in the industry who are all working towards a more inclusive environment,” - Joanne Surgeoner, Fan Engagement Manager for Brentford Football Club.
As one of several Premier League clubs to support the work of Her Game Too, Brentford have endeavoured to ensure their GTech Community Stadium is an inclusive and welcoming place for women, through initiatives like providing free sanitary products in the toilets and including images of Brentford FC Women players outside the stadium alongside the male players.
Joanne’s role as Fan Engagement Manager involves implementing matchday fan services, organising events for supporters on non-matchdays, carrying out consultations and gathering feedback from fans.
She has found the club to be a welcoming place for women to work, with equity, diversity and inclusion events taking place and a Women’s Staff Network, where females from the club get together to share ideas, celebrate achievements, give advice and hear from industry specialists.
Joanne said: “It has been amazing working with Her Game Too and in particular Ali Mullaley (Her Game Too’s Brentford Ambassador), who is super passionate about making the game welcoming for everyone and always has great ideas on how to do this.
“Her Game Too’s aims and ethos align with my values too - I would hate for anyone not to come to watch a game, or try out for a football team just because they are a girl or woman.
“Football is the only sport that has held my attention throughout my life and I feel really lucky to work with some exceptional women in the industry, who are all working towards a more inclusive environment.”
“We are dedicated to breaking down barriers and creating equal opportunities for all,” - Emma Rampling, Director and Client Liaison at Her Game Too’s IT partner GR.IT Consultancy.
Football and technology have historically both been male-dominated industries, so Emma and her colleagues identified with Her Game Too’s ethos of making football a game for all after witnessing low numbers of females applying for jobs in IT.
GR.IT Consultancy stepped forward to provide support to all of Her Game Too’s IT services, and simultaneously seeks to create more opportunities for talented women to shine in the technology industry.
Emma Rampling, Director and Client Liaison at GR.IT Consultancy, said: “At GR.IT, we are champions for women in tech and dedicated to breaking down barriers and creating equal opportunities for all.
“When we saw the great work Her Game Too were doing, we had to reach out.
“It’s a perfect match as we share a common goal of empowering women and promoting gender equality, both in the tech industry and the world of football.
“Together, we aim to create a powerful platform for change, fostering awareness and driving conversations around sexism in football while leveraging the potential of technology to amplify our message.”
“Although they are different campaigns, the basic value of supporting people is fundamentally the same,” - Charlotte Churchill, Director and Founder of Operation Christmas Hamper (also known as Chief Elf Officer).
Christmas in the Bristol area is a particularly special time, because local sports clubs put rivalries aside and unite to support Operation Christmas Hamper - an initiative Charlotte set up to compile and distribute festive hampers to people in need.
Last Christmas, volunteers from Her Game Too joined forces with Bristol Pitbulls, Bristol City, Bristol Rovers, Gas Girls and Gloucestershire County Cricket Club to put together 656 hampers - almost double the previous year’s amount.
Charlotte said: “Being a Bristol Rovers fan, I have got to know Her Game Too directors Caz and Lucy (who also support the club).
“I applaud what Her Game Too stands for and the effort that the girls put into it.
“Alongside that, they support Operation Christmas Hamper with their time coming to meetings, helping with fundraising and also with the creative and designing side of things.
“We love Operation Christmas Hamper and Her Game Too coming together because, although they are different campaigns, the basic value of supporting people is fundamentally the same.”
Charlotte and her team of volunteers are aiming to make 1,000 hampers through Operation Christmas Hamper later this year.