Women’s football has the power to help the whole of women’s sport grow. Women’s football has the power to change the world for women and girls. Women’s football has the power to change the whole of society.”
Inspiring words from our director of women’s football, Sue Day, ahead of the annual global celebration of International Women’s Day.
Somebody who knows what it means to represent England on the big stage, having played for her country in three Rugby World Cups, the former rugby union international took up her position with the FA in December last year.
Day replaced the outgoing Baroness Sue Campbell in the role, departing the RFU where she previously served as a member, chief operations officer and chief financial officer.
“I have absolutely loved it,” said Day, who is also responsible for the next phase of development for disability football in England. “It’s getting my head around everything that is women’s football and I mean that in the broadest sense.
“I’ve been working in the grassroots game and equal opportunities for girls in schools and getting familiar with all of the work to facilitate playing the game across all levels both on and off the pitch.”
“There’s just such a breadth of everything going on to grow the sport.”
Friday 7 March saw the return of the Biggest Ever Football Session (BEFS) for a fourth edition. The flagship day built on last year’s success which saw a record-breaking 475,000 girls from 5,000 schools across the country taking part.
And this year’s initiative included interactive classroom-based sessions, showcasing the various opportunities that are available within the sport, away from the pitch.
“It’s a moment in time and it’s a day where we can showcase all the amazing work that’s going on in schools,” continued Day.
“The point of this year is we’re really trying to show girls that there’s a role for you anywhere in football. Yes, you can play football but also, you can be a coach, you can be a match official, you can be a journalist, you can be an administrator or you could work in a digital content team.
“I’ve talked about all these grand things that football can do to change society but the other thing it can do is make sure people have fun. Playing football is really fun and it’s just so wonderful watching all these girls running around, having a great time.”
The BEFS coincided with International Women’s Day 2025 which takes place on Saturday 8 March, along with the launch of our new women and girls’ campaign – Made for this Game – which was unveiled last week. And it’s an important date in the diary, as she reiterated.
“I think the best thing we can all do is think, ‘what is it that I can do?’” explained Day. “For every individual, it’s about what can you do to further opportunities for women and girls.
“And particularly in our space, ‘what can I do to further opportunities for women and girls in football?’ That’s really important because it brings a bit of focus to every single one of us.
“People pay attention to football – football is interesting and it’s part of people’s psyche and their everyday lives. We can show, through football, how brilliant women and girls can be. That’s what can change the world.”
Not only is Day – who was awarded an MBE for services to gender equality in sport back in 2020 – a role model in her own right, she has been inspired by a number of female leaders during her career.
She cites Serena Williams as one of her biggest inspirations, along with our Lionesses, both past and present.
“The women that I find inspiring are the women who go for what they believe in,” said Day. “The people who spring to mind are people like Serena Williams. She’s a tennis player absolutely but look at the difference she’s made off the court.
“People like our Lionesses and the way that they are both football players and advocate for the things that they believe in off the pitch.
“We’ve got Rachel Yankey here at our Biggest Ever Football Session and she’s been coaching the girls – she’s an absolute legend of the game who fought hard and achieved so much.”
In October last year we launched our women and girls’ strategy which outlines our priorities over the next four years (2024-2028).
Titled ‘Reaching Higher’, the strategy aims to build on the transformational success already achieved and the hard work has already begun.
“It’s brilliant title because it nods to the fact that we’ve done so much already and it’s really important to acknowledge that and celebrate how far women’s football has come in the last few years,” commented Day.
“At the same time, it’s really important to remind ourselves that there’s so much more work to do. We’re already rolling our sleeves up and getting on with all the strands of that strategy and looking forward to getting stuck in. You name it – it’s on the agenda.
“Looking around us, everybody at the FA and in sport is working so hard and it takes every single one of us to make a difference. I’m really proud of the work that we’re all doing across the FA and everybody should be proud quite rightly.”
