Former Chelsea manager Emma Hayes has said it is important to have more female role models to address the lack of women in coaching roles.
Only 9% of professional football managers are women, which is something Football Manager’s ‘Missing Managers’ initiative seeks to change.
Currently the head coach of the United States Women’s National Team, Hayes is responsible for working with Xbox and Sky Sports to use the capabilities of Football Manager 26 to find the next female soccer coach.
“One of the things I’ve always tried to advocate for is the visibility piece,” Hayes said. pitching to pod Podcast.
“It can sometimes be disheartening to see how limited women are, not only in coaching but across the game.
“I think it’s important for girls and women to have more female role models, so it’s not just about the coaching part, it’s about the role model part and having guidance.
“Especially if we want girls to stay in sport and not drop out early on, we need to better understand what girls are going through and be able to connect with them through the right conversations.”
“For me, the lack of female coaches plays a big role.”
The campaign provides women with the opportunity to kick-start their coaching careers with fully-funded professional training.
Hayes won seven WSL titles while in charge of Chelsea.
Hayes believes there are several factors that need to be considered to get more women into coaching.
“First of all, we have to adapt it to a women’s lens. And too often we copy and paste everything from the men’s game to the men’s players. I think that’s a failure of the system.
“I think we need to think about what works for women to get into the game. How do we enable them to do that?
“I’ve always talked about the importance of job sharing or more online courses, so some people end up managing families or carers. So there are sacrifices that have to be made, and sometimes I think it’s impossible for people to stay there.
“And then of course there’s the mentoring part of mentoring people through that process. So I think it’s a system and we’re all in it. I think that requires us to be much more intentional in designing the system.”
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In Pitch to Pod, Emma Hayes praises former player Millie Bright on her record number of Women’s Super League appearances and explains why she is such a special player.
‘I had great support and was one of the lucky ones.’
Hayes also spoke about the support she received after giving birth to her son Harry while at Chelsea in 2018. When asked if she would have quit the game without the support from those around her, she said this.
“Yes, 100%. I feel very lucky to have had the support, but I was privileged.
“I was in the best position to have the support to do that, but I was also doing it in the dark, and I had no role model to follow.
“And I think that’s why I’ve always wanted to talk openly about parenthood in coaching and normalize it as much as possible.
“But I think it would be too difficult for too many people to do that without the support of their families or the support of their clubs.
“Whether it’s a youth club, an amateur club or a professional club, I think how intentional we are in not only bringing women into the coaching space but also continuing to think through their lens rather than a male lens.”
Games can create a new path to football
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Former Chelsea manager and USWNT manager Emma Hayes is unlikely to return to club management and is honored to be inducted into the National Football Museum Hall of Fame.
Although technology continues to advance in and out of football, Hayes hopes it can be used to get more people involved in the sport.
The Football Manager franchise has seen its audience grow exponentially in recent years, with over 19 million people playing Football Manager 24 globally.
With the introduction of women’s soccer in the latest version of the game, released in early November, Hayes believes the game could help bring more people into the professional game.
“I think we can use the game as a new avenue for soccer, and that in itself is exceptional,” the USWNT head coach admitted.
“We should consider that as of 2024 there were only 21 professionally qualified female coaches in the UK.
“Can you imagine the impact a game can have on in-game interest? And unintentionally, this is a campaign that provides education and fully funded courses that people can do.
“I hope that eventually it will have an impact on the system. What they do is unique to me.”
Hear the full interview in the bonus episode of Pitch to Pod, available whenever you download the podcast.
