Meet Kayleigh!
Kayleigh is 30 years young, and she has been playing football since the age of 14. When she first started out, she played for St Neots Youth Team which was for under 16s & 17s. Unfortunately, the league folded as there weren’t enough girls teams to play against, so Kayleigh had a break from football for a few years.
One day, Kayleigh realised she missed playing football and didn’t want anything to stop her from playing again, so at 23 she started playing football with her current team, Eaton Socon Women’s Team. The position she started in was a left winger, and she now plays several positions such as left back/left wing back and she’s now also the vice captain, and a coach for younger girls at the club!
Kayleigh has always enjoyed watching Arsenal play and is a big supporter of the team. She gained her passion of playing football because she enjoyed watching the sport with her family and friends, and became determined to join a women’s team. Her role models growing up were the Arsenal legends Thierry Henry, Mikel Arteta and Jack Wilshere. She also had friends growing up who played football which inspired her too!
Breaking Stereotypes
We asked Kayleigh – “Football has traditionally been seen as a male-dominated sport. Have you ever faced challenges or stereotypes because you’re a woman who plays football?” and she responded with “I find a lot of the refs we’ve had often won’t tolerate certain behaviours because we are women – when you watch men’s football they get away with 10x more of the things we get away with!”. However, Kayleigh has always felt supported during her football journey, especially within her team. This is extremely important, and shows that women have each others backs, and there is support out there for the women who want to play the sport.
“What would you say to people who still think football is “a man’s game”? “I would say I think that they’re silly, women have already won so much and proven we’re just as capable!”
The Rise Of Women’s Football
Since 2022, when England’s Women’s Team won the UEFA Women’s Euros – there has been a significant rise in interest from women wanting to play football. Kayleigh believes the rise in girls and women wanting to play football is because of how inspirational the England women’s teams have been. They’ve also been shown more on TV and social media over the last few years which then allows women and girls of all ages to have the chance to explore the sport, learn more about it and realise that they’ve not been excluded from participating in football just because they’re female.
Kayleigh has expressed that women can do just as well as men in football. We asked her “How important is it to have successful women’s teams and female footballers in the spotlight?“. Her reply was “I think it just proves that women can do it just as much or as well as the men can! We brought it home at the end of the day… will the men do that?”
There’s always improvements to be made, and many women across the UK believe that there could be more changes to help support women’s football. Kayleigh has said “there needs to be less stigma around it and everyone loves football so we should all love it and support it together. Women have had a lot more physical support over the past few years. Being in women’s cup finals and having big numbers attend proves people want to watch it”.
Research shows that male football fans account for around 61.9% of women’s football viewership in the UK. So that just proves that men are supporting women in football more than what we think, and hopefully this makes more women feel encouraged that they’re not being judged by being involved in football.
As you can see from the photo on the left, Kayleigh also coaches younger girls at the football club she plays for. The fact that younger girls too are being given the opportunity to play the sport is massive, and it shows that it shouldn’t only be boys that are bought up playing the sport. Kayleigh seems to be a wonderful role model for the children, and it’s great to see that she’s encouraging them to participate in such a great sport.
Personal Achievements
Kayleigh is incredibly proud (and so she should be) to shout from the rooftops that her and her team have won two cup finals, and she was also chosen to be Vice Captain recently too. We asked her if football has changed her as a person and we loved her response. She said “It allows me to feel free; when I play football nothing else worries me“. This is exactly how you should feel when you’re doing something you want to pursue. The fact women can feel like this when they’re doing something they enjoy reassures others that they could enjoy new or existing hobbies too, and they will feel fully supported by doing it.
Kayleigh also mentioned a lesson she has learnt is that every day is a learning day. “People make mistakes and they get back up… they win and lose together“. So many women are scared to try new things, or they get anxious when they make a mistake because they’re worried of being judged by others. When you have people around you who enjoy the same thing and support you, it instantly makes you feel ok about making those mistakes. It’s all about taking risks, being proud of who you are and what choices you are making.
“I love telling people I play football. It makes me happy and it’s a great conversation starter!”
Looking ahead
Kayleigh’s goals for the future, both in football and beyond is to encourage as many girls and women to play football or be involved in the sport in some way. She doesn’t want people to feel scared or alone. As mentioned earlier, Kayleigh is a coach for younger girls at her football club and she enjoys seeing the girls enjoying the sport and becoming more confident each time she coaches.
Another question we asked Kayleigh was “If your story inspires just one woman or girl to pick up a football, what would you want her to take away from it?“. Kayleigh’s comment back was “It’ll open so many opportunities! I never thought when I first played football I’d have been winning trophies, making new friends, be a vice captain of a team and now a coach! It’s not just about football, it’s about what doors it opens and the confidence it gives you!”.
Making friends and having something in common with them is really good for your mental health and social life, and the fact that football can help with confidence could be really reassuring for a lot of women who want to play the sport but don’t know where to start. There are so many ladies out there that are looking for new friends, wanting to become fitter, or are feeling a bit bored of being stuck at home… so maybe joining a football club could be the way forward?
The closing question
The final question we asked Kayleigh was “In one sentence, what does football mean to you?“. Kayleigh replied “Football just means happiness and a family to me, it’s my happy place”.
If you would like to find your happy place, and if Kayleigh has inspired you to play football – just go and do it girl! There is absolutely nothing stopping you…just like Kayleigh has proved.