Hope Powell is the first woman, Black person, and youngest ever person who has been a Coach of any English National Football team. This is unsurprising given her incredible talent and fervour for the sport. Despite the challenges that could have been a spanner in the works for her success, she has managed to earn her place in the English Football Hall of Fame. She is now available to share her story, through the speaking engagements that she can be hired for where she is known to talk about procuring equality for members of all groups.
Despite being banned by the FA from playing for her school team beyond the age of 11, she managed to debut for England at 16, pass FA’s preliminary coaching award at 19, and become the first-ever female, Black coach of an English team at 31. She is also the first woman to have ever received her UEFA Pro License. Starting off as a Millwall Lioness, she played for Fulham and then captained the Bromley and Croydon team. It was from her senior manager at the Millwall Lionesses where passion for managing a team arose. She served as the Head Coach of Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club from 2013 to 2022 and as the National Coach for the England Women’s Team for 15 years before that.
A terrific player herself, she debuted in the first-ever women’s English world cup team appearance in 1995 and has since won about 66 caps for England and even won the FA Cup and Greater London League. Awarded an OBE in 2002 and a CBE in 2010 for her service to the sport, she now consults at FIFA as a Coach Educator for the development of women’s football globally. Hope is also a Technical Consultant at UEFA where she performs tournament analyses and delivers technical and tactical observations useful for European Championships.
Having been a Coach Educator at the Professional Football Association, her expertise is trusted and respected widely. Hope has also received Honorary Doctorate Degrees from the University of East London and the University of Brighton. When hired as a speaker, Hope is likely to talk about how to overcome obstacles in order to achieve your goals and is often heard explaining to her audience why it is important to fight for equality across all groups. A seasoned player, leader, and now speaker, Hope Powell would be an excellent choice for your next event. Enquire now!
