Heather Rabbatts, one of English football’s most recognisable female faces, and FA Board member, has commended The Football Association’s progress in fostering gender equality.
Rabbatts was named among The Guardian's top 50 most influential women in British sport, a list compiled to mark International Women’s Day.
She said: "International Women’s Day is a good opportunity to focus on both the progress women have made in across all walks of life but also some of the challenges we still face.
"For women in football, The FA WSL is a great platform for talented players, and the number of girls playing is growing constantly.
"There are more women working at The FA than ever before, the Board of Wembley Stadium has prominent female figures on it, and I believe this trend will only continue in the ascendancy."
Rabbatts, who is also chair of The FA’s Inclusion and Advisory Board, continued: "The FA is constantly working to promote women as role models, encouraging them to aspire for executive roles across the game as well as becoming physios, marketers and so on.
"Just look at people like [FA Director of National Game and Women's Football] Kelly Simmons and [St. George's Park Managing Director] Julie Harrington; talented women inspiring others."
