W Euro 2022: Girls and women inspired by Lionesses’ success
Narrative around women’s football changing
Girls and women inspired by Lionesses success as the joy continues to spread.
This historic run by the Lionesses has marked a new era for Women’s football in England, and the UK. It’s remarkable to think that just over 100 years ago, women’s football was banned by the FA due to the committee believing it was ‘unsuitable for females.
But in 2022, women’s football is the UK’s fastest rising sport and big brands and media companies are finally throwing their support behind women’s football. Arsenal’s Kelly Smith was named as one of the 50 most influential footballers of all time – alongside Messi and Pele – it’s clear, that the narrative around women’s football is finally changing.
And it’s not just changing for the professional players but for women and girls across the UK.
In a Metro article – the Euros have inspired 10.5 million women in the UK, who are thinking about joining local teams, according to recent research. A fifth of women aged 16-65 want to get involved in the sport but don’t know where to start.
“For women and girls across the UK it’s providing opportunity and, as dramatic it might sound, really changing lives”
Interviews with Metro.co.uk
Isabelle Traore, 15 – ‘Football lifts my mood’
Teenager Isabelle Traore tells Metro.co.uk that she was at risk of exclusion when she started playing. The 15-year-old from Sidcup in Kent was loud and disruptive at school and often in trouble for speaking back to teachers. She spent a lot of time in detention.
‘I got told off a lot but I never realised I was the one causing the problems,’ she explains. ‘I always thought everyone was against me. Football calmed me down.’
Everything changed for Isabelle when Football Beyond Borders, a charity that works with young people who have become disengaged from education, visited her school in year seven.
As soon as she joined in a game with coaches from the charity, Isabelle says she felt a weight lift from her shoulders.
‘As I played, everything cleared from my mind,’ she recalls. ‘I wasn’t great at it at the beginning, but I got better.’
Isabelle began playing whenever she could and started looking for clubs. She played for Girls United FA and Fulham and tried out for Watford, although she didn’t make the team
Working with trusted coaches, her need to challenge authority dissipated and she started to focus instead on fitness and stamina. The game kept her on the right track, she says, after witnessing friends get involved in drink and drugs.
‘I started being more productive and doing after school clubs,’ she explains. ‘All my friends would go off with other people, and they would be influenced, but I would be doing my own thing.
‘I tried to get them involved with what I was doing. Some of them joined in, but others went down the wrong path and got into a bad crowd. But because of football, I didn’t.’
Isabelle, who lives with her aunt as her mother has been seriously ill, says the game also saved her mental health: ‘I would go see Mum before going to play, and I would feel quite down. But when I play, it takes my mind off everything.
‘Keeping myself fit and in good shape, makes me feel better. It lifts my mood.
‘When you get a goal, everyone is proud of you. Everyone comes running after you. It feels so good – they are all praising you. It makes you really happy and you feel it for the whole week. It really helps your confidence.’
Rayanna Doe, 9 – ‘Meeting people from all cultures’
Football can also open your eyes to new experiences and cultures, according to nine-year-old Rayanne Doe, who has just finished her first season playing as a defender for Actonians in West London.
As a Muslim, the game has enabled her to play with children from other communities and challenge stereotypes, her dad, James, tells Metro.co.uk.
‘Football is a good way to find new friends from all backgrounds
Her team at Actonians includes girls from English, Irish, Egyptian, Italian, Polish and Serbian backgrounds and during Ramadan they worked around her fasting ‘which was a learning experience for all involved’, he adds.
‘Football is a good way to find new friends from all backgrounds,’ says schoolgirl Rayanne. ‘It teaches me teamwork and helps build my confidence. It has helped improve my fitness and it shows we can do whatever boys do.’
- Read the full interviews here: As the Lionesses roar their way through the Euros, why women’s football is the fastest growing sport right now
