Developing Fair and Diverse Structures in Football- DISCOVER FOOTBALL sport event

The Multiplier Sport Event implemented by Discover Football in Germany was organised around the findings of the SUE Report “Why we need structure to change” focused on the need to change the structures / the unsupportive environment for women in football, to promote growth, inclusivity and diversity.

The panel was moderated by Johanna Small who explored the possibilities of structure changes with five panellists from different backgrounds:

Sainabou Cham, Gambia
Ava Germaine Bodian, Senegal
Gaby Papenburg, Germany
Selin Yildiz, Turkey Pia Mann, Germany

Several exciting questions were brought into the audience’s attention: When we as women want to change the existing structures in football, there are many questions that arise: Should we play along in the clubs and associations, that are frequently dominated by cis-men, and try to break-up outdated perspectives and structures from within, or is it better to tackle these from outside as activists? Is a quota a good idea in order to change the state of play in organised football? Do we want progress that is achievable and that can be secured quickly for individual groups on a small scale, or do we challenge patriarchal norms and power relations as a whole? Or is it better to develop alternative structures, in which we can play by our own rules? And who do we actually mean by “we?” Which women are meant with this? And how much diversity, in its full complexity, can be taken into account?