Baroness Sue Campbell says diversity in English women’s football is an area in which she hopes “we’re building”.
England’s squad for their victorious Euros campaign in 2022 featuring only three players of black or mixed heritage – a figure that dropped to two for the 2023 World Cup – was something highlighted in former Lioness Karen Carney’s women’s football review published last summer.
Describing it as a “glaring reflection” of a wider issue, Carney’s review said the Football Association “should urgently address the lack of diversity across the women’s game – in both on and off pitch roles.”
Campbell, who is this year set to retire from her role as the FA’s director of women’s football, has referenced the boost there has been in access to football for girls in schools and changes to the talent pathway as she stressed that while there is “a lot more work to do”, there has been “some progress” made.
She told the PA news agency: “It’s something we take extremely seriously.
“The fact we’ve got equal access in school will give us far more young people from diverse backgrounds – whether that’s socio-economic deprivation, ethnicity, we’re beginning to get a level playing field of girls coming into our sport.
“The next thing that’s going to help them become visible on the big stages of women’s sport is that talent pathway.
“When we redesigned it, we put a lot more emphasis at the bottom end – so we’ve created a programme Discover My Talent, which is working with the Premier League and EFL Trusts, reaching into communities we would never reach.
“We’ve had over 3,000 referrals of young people that we would probably have never found.
“If Discover My Talent is the entry point for diversity, the next bit is the Emerging Talent Centres. We’ve now got 73 of them, which makes them more local, and we’ve got a fund so if a youngster is finding it difficult to get somewhere, we can now fund their transport to and from ETCs.
“And we’ve seen about 25 per cent increase in social deprivation youngsters getting into the ETCs, and 10 per cent increase in under-represented groups.
“We’re making progress. Are we satisfied and are we there? No, not at all. But we are making progress in the player world. And we’re working very hard in the coach world to identify potential coaches.
“At the bottom end of our England teams, our 15s, 16s, we’re starting to see a much more diverse representation, much more representative of the communities we live in.
“So I’m hoping we’re building. I think there’s a lot more work to do, but we are addressing it.
“It isn’t something you can click your fingers and do. Sarina (Wiegman, the England manager) can only pick the best people in front of her. If we’re not getting more people through that pathway, (it’s) impossible for her. I think we’ve made some progress, definitely.”
The FA announced last September that Campbell, who has been with the organisation since 2016, would be retiring from her role in 2024 once her successor had been appointed and joined.
The 75-year-old this week said a conclusion to the process of bringing in a new director of women’s football was “fairly close”.
Premier League clubs to vote on scrapping VAR after Wolves proposal
Premier League clubs will be asked to vote on the prospect of scrapping VAR for next season following a proposal from Wolves.
The use of VAR in the Premier League has been a talking point since its introduction at the start of the 2019-20 season, with a number of controversial decisions intensifying the debate surrounding its use this term.
Wolves have been on the wrong end of several contentious decisions this season, starting from their opening game last August, as Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) representative Jon Moss apologised for a failure to award them a penalty during a 1-0 loss to Manchester United.
More recently, Wolves saw a potential stoppage-time equaliser against West Ham disallowed for a subjective offside call against Tawanda Chirewa, with boss Gary O'Neil given a one-match ban for a post-match outburst towards referee Tony Harrington.
Nottingham Forest have also been angered by several decisions in recent weeks, while PGMOL memorably apologised to Liverpool after Luis Diaz saw a goal wrongly disallowed in a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham last September.
Wolves have now tabled a resolution calling for VAR to be abolished, with clubs set to vote on the issue at an annual general meeting on June 6. Premier League rules require 14 of 20 clubs to vote in favour of a proposal for it to pass.
In a widely reported statement, Wolves said VAR had been introduced "in good faith and with the best interests of football and the Premier League at heart" but lamented a number of negative repercussions.
The club say VAR has caused frustration and confusion among match-going fans, negatively impacted the atmosphere at games, diminished accountability of match officials and overreached beyond its original aim to correct "clear and obvious" errors.
Wolves also said persistent errors being made despite the presence of VAR were difficult to accept and had furthered "completely nonsensical" allegations of corruption from supporters.
The club added: "Our position is that the price we are paying for a small increase in accuracy is at odds with the spirit of our game, and as a result we should remove it from the 2024-25 season onwards."
A Premier League spokesperson said: "The Premier League can confirm it will facilitate a discussion on VAR with our clubs at the annual general meeting next month.
"Clubs are entitled to put forward proposals at shareholders' meetings and we acknowledge the concerns and issues around the use of VAR.
"However, the league fully supports the use of VAR and remains committed, alongside PGMOL, to make continued improvements to the system for the benefit of the game and fans."
Sweden recently became the first country to opt against the implementation of VAR at the top level following a fan backlash.
Wolves boss O'Neil has repeatedly spoken out against the use of VAR since saying the award of two controversial penalties to Fulham in a 3-2 loss last November had turned him against the technology.
De Bruyne: Man City know title race 'is not over'
Kevin De Bruyne insists the Manchester City players know the Premier League title race is not over, despite being in the driving seat with just one game left.
The Citizens beat Tottenham 2-0 on Tuesday in their game in hand over leaders Arsenal, leapfrogging them to the top of the table.
City will host West Ham on the final weekend and as long as Pep Guardiola’s side match Arsenal’s result against Everton, they will win an unprecedented fourth consecutive Premier League title.
De Bruyne has played down suggestions that City celebrated like they had already won the title following the victory.
"We were happy, obviously, because it gets in the place that we wanted to be on Sunday," he told Sky Sports. "I didn't feel like there were any extra celebrations.
"Obviously, you're happy to win the game, but we know it's not done yet.
"I know everybody's talking now saying it should be easy, but we're used to playing these couple of games against Brighton and Villa before and it's never easy. There's always the pressure of being in that situation, so I think it's quite normal."
City’s win over Tottenham makes them big favourites to win the title, with the Opta supercomputer giving them an 84.3 per cent chance of lifting the Premier League trophy once more.
During their victory at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, sections of the crowd cheered Erling Haaland’s opener by doing the Poznan, a celebration often used by the City fans, as the result shifted the title race out of their North London rivals' favour.
Asked if he had ever played in an environment like that before, De Bruyne added: "I think it's strange, but I didn't feel it from a players perspective.
"I have to say I thought Tottenham were really good, I think they played better than they did the weeks before.
"Fans are always a different thing, but I feel it's more feeding from outside, I never thought that from the players' or coaches' perspective, they would not come and give their best. That's the only thing we worry about."
Italy forward Zaniolo to miss Euro 2024 due to foot injury
Italy forward Nicolo Zaniolo will miss Euro 2024 after suffering a foot injury during Aston Villa's Premier League draw with Liverpool on Monday.
Zaniolo – who joined Unai Emery's side on a season-long loan from Galatasaray last August – came on as a second-half substitute as they fought back from 3-1 down to clinch a 3-3 draw at Villa Park.
That result moved Villa closer to securing Champions League qualification, which was confirmed when Tottenham lost 2-0 at home to Manchester City on Tuesday.
Zaniolo only lasted 14 minutes following his 65th-minute introduction before being withdrawn himself, though, and scans have shown he sustained a microfracture to his foot.
The 24-year-old has now confirmed he will be unable to feature in Italy's title defence at the Euros, with their Group B campaign set to begin against Albania on June 15.
In a post to his Instagram account, Zaniolo wrote: "Thank you for your support in these hours, to you Villans and to the many Italian and Turkish fans. I can't wait to get back on the field stronger than before!
"Unfortunately, I will have to give up my dream of representing my country in a major competition. But that day will come, I'm sure, and it will be beautiful! Come on Azzurri!"
Zaniolo also missed Italy's triumphant run at the delayed Euro 2020 three years ago as he was recovering from a ruptured cruciate ligament.
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