I’ll be honest. I don’t think the Lionesses matter that much to my friends. I’m not sure that women’s football matters that much to them, either.
Most of my friends are people I’ve known since school. A lot are boys. We are all from London. We are all tapped into the cultural mix of music, motives, fashion and food that makes our city one of the coolest places to live in the world.
When we met, my friends didn’t know much about women’s football. They certainly didn’t know I was into it. For so long, football was my passion, but it was never the thing I talked about. I lived a dual life. I was chatty and energetic. I was fortunate to have lots of close friends. But they didn’t know about my passion because, in my head, it wasn’t worth celebrating.
The sad reality is that they still don’t know much about women’s football. Despite countless interviews and brand campaigns I’ve been involved in, they still don’t care.
I can’t blame them. Most people have their first experiences of football dictated to them by men and boys. Men tend to dominate and gatekeep football and the media.
Last week I presented an event attended by some of the biggest names in the game. Alex Scott, Karen Carney and Rachel Yankey watched as a panel of teenage girls explained that the Lionesses’ win in the European Championship hadn’t had an impact on their lives. It was disheartening to see something that meant so much to so many had completely missed a generation of girls.
Repeatedly they told us their formative experiences with football were often initiated and understood via the men in their lives; with their relationship to football often waxing and waning depending on these relationships.
At the event we launched a new report called Inspiring a Generation? authored by the Beyond Borders movement. The Beyond Borders movement – Football Beyond Borders and Youth Beyond Borders – aims to redefine social impact and purpose. We focus on young people and create a fairer future by working with collaborators who share our vision.
In our conversations with teenage girls, we have thought a lot about how women’s football can become culturally relevant. We’ve thought about how the Lionesses can help. We’ve made recommendations too.
The importance of cultural icons stood out. We need the whole team to be visible. We need to know more about them. Everyone’s identity is made up of so many different things. Everyone should get the chance to tell their story. It can’t be left to Lauren James and Alex Scott to represent a generation of teenage girls from global majority backgrounds.
The stories of girls and women who love the game also matter. There are so many people working hard to address the issue in communities and clubs across the country. They have to be championed. It is here where you’ll find the stories and hooks that young people can relate to.
Young people can’t always connect to players on the big stage, because that’s so far away from their reality. It’s too detached. Where did those players begin? Football cages, muddy pitches, school playgrounds. These are spaces that young people recognise.
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Young girls build attachment and connection through authenticity, through realness. Hearing about the start of the journey is more important than the headlines and bright lights. What tunes do they listen to? What foundation do they use? What makes the Lionesses angry?
Being unapologetic about the diversity of womanhood is one step. Shouting loud and celebrating this in public is another. Brands, broadcasters and boys doing it on our behalf. We’ve broken many barriers but that hurdle still stands. We want to inspire a generation of teenage girls that women’s football is not just part of culture, but that it defines culture.
The Lionesses have got the attention of the nation this summer. Their focus will, undoubtedly, be on tournament victory. I hope they bring it home. I hope the pride burns inside me when they lift the trophy. But more than that, I hope it burns bolder and brighter in the teenage girls I work with, when they discover they have more in common with them than they might have thought possible.
Debra Nelson is a board member of Youth Beyond Borders.
