Women in a 'Man's World': A Study of Women Working in Leadership Positions in Men's Professional Football in England.
Lead Research Organisation:
Durham University
Department Name: School of Applied Social Sciences
Abstract
This is an AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership, which is in partnership with the National Football Museum. The project is supervised by Dr. Stacey Pope and Professor Linda McKie at Durham University and Dr. Kevin Moore at the National Museum. A large body of research has examined women's experiences of playing football, whilst less attention has been paid to the experiences of women in non-playing roles, including the experiences of women working in leadership positions in football. This research project focuses upon women who have challenged the traditionally male domain of football by working in senior roles in men's professional football in England. The project focuses upon the experiences of women working in senior roles in football in the new commercialised era of English football, since the formation of the Premier League in 1992. Particular attention will be paid to any changes over the past 25 years, details of the experiences of women working in senior roles and barriers and stereotypes encountered. The project will use oral history interviews with women working in senior roles in men's football.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Stacey Pope (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Amee Gill (Student) |
| Title | Women in football leadership in England (1988-2018) |
| Description | Database of women who have worked in a leadership capacity in football in England over a 30 year period (name, club, role, tenure). The database will be archived in the National Football Museum as a resource for historians and football scholars at the end of the project. The database is the only existing record of women who have worked in football leadership. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Paper currently in publication based on data from this database. |
| Description | Collaborative Doctoral Partnership with Sporting Heritage and the National Football Museum |
| Organisation | Sporting Heritage Community Interest Company |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | - Access to research data relating to the history of women in football leadership that will be part of the NAtional Football Museum's 2021 Women in Football exhibition. - Research expertise on women in football leadership i.e. being a panelist for the National Football Museum's IWD Q&A on women and football - Location of archive materials and contributing interview transcripts to the National Football Museum archives - Contributing to Sporting Heritage blogs |
| Collaborator Contribution | - £3000 research grant to cover research-related activities i.e. travel to interviews - Exhibition space at the National Football Museum to display research outputs relating to the history of women in football leadership - Access to the National Football Museum's archives - Access to training and events through the Sporting Heritage network |
| Impact | - Blog post for Sporting Heritage - Invited panelist for the National Football Museum IWD Q&A on Women and Football - Paper Presentation the 2018 PSorting Heritage conference - Panelist (CDP students) at 2019 the Sporting Heritage conference |
| Start Year | 2017 |
| Description | Collaborative Doctoral Partnership with Sporting Heritage and the National Football Museum |
| Organisation | The National Football Museum |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | - Access to research data relating to the history of women in football leadership that will be part of the NAtional Football Museum's 2021 Women in Football exhibition. - Research expertise on women in football leadership i.e. being a panelist for the National Football Museum's IWD Q&A on women and football - Location of archive materials and contributing interview transcripts to the National Football Museum archives - Contributing to Sporting Heritage blogs |
| Collaborator Contribution | - £3000 research grant to cover research-related activities i.e. travel to interviews - Exhibition space at the National Football Museum to display research outputs relating to the history of women in football leadership - Access to the National Football Museum's archives - Access to training and events through the Sporting Heritage network |
| Impact | - Blog post for Sporting Heritage - Invited panelist for the National Football Museum IWD Q&A on Women and Football - Paper Presentation the 2018 PSorting Heritage conference - Panelist (CDP students) at 2019 the Sporting Heritage conference |
| Start Year | 2017 |
| Description | Article for The Conversation - "Football's gender problem: from the pitch to the boardroom, women are still being blocked from the top jobs" |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Article published in The Conversation ("Football's gender problem: from the pitch to the boardroom, women are still being blocked from the top jobs") detailing initial findings on the numbers of women in the football leadership pipeline and why they are being blocked from the top jobs. The article was shared by 188 people on social media platforms and attractive several comments and questions from the public and fellow academics online, which I was able to answer and engage with. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://theconversation.com/footballs-gender-problem-from-the-pitch-to-the-boardroom-women-are-still... |
| Description | Interview for regional radio |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Two-part interview conducted for BBC Radio Newcastle (25.01.19) to publicise research findings from archival research at the National Football Museum. The interview sparked further interest in my research findings (increase in people following research on social media) and requests for further media engagement (Women's Hour BBC Radio 4). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Panelist for the National Football Museum's International Women's Day Q&A panel on Women in Football |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Over 50 people, including students from a local school and staff from a local football club, attended the IWD Q&A on women in football. The panel sparked questions and discussion from the audience on women's role in football. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.nationalfootballmuseum.com/whatson/iwd-2019-womens-football-qa/ |
| Description | Post for the National Football Museum's 'Unlocking the Hidden History of Women's Football' blog |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Wrote a blog post entitled "Pulling the Strings: 30 years of women in leadership in men's professional football in England" for the National Football Museum's 'Unlocking the Hidden History of Women's football project". I was subsequently contacted by several women in the football industry to talk about my research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://unlockingthehiddenhistory.wordpress.com/2018/08/14/pulling-the-strings-30-years-of-women-in-... |
| Description | Press Release |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Press release for published paper "On the Periphery: Women's Exclusion from Core Leadership Roles in the 'Extremely Gendered' Organisation of Men's Club Football in England" in The Voice online. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.voice-online.co.uk/sport/2021/11/10/women-sidelined-for-leadership-roles-in-sport/ |