A new Football Leadership Diversity Code has been launched with the aim of driving diversity and inclusion across the game in England.
More than 40 clubs across the Premier League, EFL, Barclays FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have signed up to the Code and committed to tackling inequality across senior leadership positions, broader team operations and coaching roles.
The Code has been developed in collaboration with club executives, players, coaches, HR directors, media and leaders across the game to ensure English football better represents modern society.
It focuses on increasing equality of opportunity with hiring targets – rather than quotas – to encourage recruitment from across society. Hiring will be based on merit, to find the best person for the job from diverse talent pipelines and the aim is to move away from recruitment practices focused on personal networks, which is a longstanding challenge across football and has limited the diversity in leadership across the game.
Paul Elliott, chair of the English Football Association’s Inclusion Advisory Board, said: “Positive and tangible action is required to drive change and take the next step. We hope more clubs join us as we move forward.”
