In the latest episode of Beyond The Pitch podcast, we were joined by guest Ella Williams, the founder of Our Goal. Our Goal is a non-profit organisation set up by Ella using the power of physical activity to empower girls and women. To make this happen they deliver mentoring programs and community football. This episode covers a range of topics including the factors that influence disengagement of young girls from football as well as what has inspired Ella to start up her initiative.
Growing up in the football industry:
Ella described her early memories of football. She explains how a group of young girls in her area played football and came knocking at her house one day, she didn’t have any reason to say no and as a result she started playing with them.
“I started playing football when I was about 8 or 9, I didn’t come from a sporty football family at all…I played through a lot of my childhood, up until I got 14 or 15”
Ella didn’t take sport as a subject, however during uni and after graduating she re-kindled her love for football and so that is where her career kicked off.
“I never really studied sport…Then I got into sport really cause after graduating I got back, well I got into football coaching, well through uni and after graduating. And then that was kind of like a point in my life where I was realising that everything that football had sort of done for me, it was doing for all of these other women and girls that were involved in football.”
“I’m like super passionate about like the power of sport and physical activity in football in terms of the off-pitch benefits… Got involved in a bit of research and more coaching, and started my career in football.”
Inspiration to start Our Goal:
Ella then went onto discuss the inspiration and reasoning for starting up her initiative of Our Goal.
“Football was such a big part of my childhood.”
She goes on to say:
“had gone into school on own clothes day in my full city kit, but like shin pads and everything, it was just like the next level.”
Something that is unfortunately relatable to a lot of girls is disengagement from their sport and passions as they grow up, Ella comments on her own experiences.
“As I got older, hit like 14, 15, my relationship with sport started to change…because I just started to like become a teenager. Like I was more self-conscious, I cared a lot about what people thought about me, how I looked and that didn’t fit very well with football…Same thing was happening at school with PE.”
“Seeing that what happened to me is just not a unique problem, so many women and girls go through this where they drop out of sport”
“It’s a massive problem and it’s something I realised that it’s not just what I faced, so many girls are still facing.”
Disengagement of young girls:
In 2022, Women In Sport found that 43% of girls drop out of sport in their teenage years.
When talking to Ella, we discussed a number of different factors that cause disengagement, highlighting that some girls suffer from more factors than others.
Ella mentioned that 61% feel judged while playing sport.
“The work that I have done with teenage girls backs that up, like feeling judged is the main, one of the main barriers in taking part in sport.”
“Unrealistic expectations that girls are exposed to is unbelievable now, like I literally don’t know how they get through their teenage years today with things like tiktok and snapchat, because i found it hard. And none of that stuff was there.”
“Another one is periods…70% of women and girls won’t take part in sport if they are on their period”
“When all the barriers come together, it’s much harder for girls to overcome them.”
Ella discussed that when there is a lack of local access for young girls, then that is when it’s important that the school environments are providing equal access as it could be the only opportunity to gain that experience within sports and physical activity.
How does Our Goal work:
It is a non profit organisation and therefore any money that is gained from the initiative is then re-invested back into the campaign. They work specifically in schools, particularly those girls that are more disengaged from sport providing a constructed program, to support them with the barriers that they are facing.
“The idea is that we are creating safe spaces to do it in…The groups will be really small, they will be max 3-4 girls in every group…be in a separate space”
Not only does Our Goal provide physical and sport activities, the program offers opportunities “mixed in with personal development so might be talking about goal setting or talking about self care.”
“It’s very important in our sessions that we start with the sport and physical activity but then for the last half of the session the girls go get changed, we have got nice deodorants, sprays and like we just make it how you would want your [experience to be].”
Our Goal definitely provides a unique program which combines support for young girls that have disengaged from physical activity with the self care aspect which improves their comfortability when taking part in such activities that evoke anxieties or worries.
Importance of role models:
Ella went on to talk about the significance of having role models that demonstrate the individuals interest and passions at best interest giving them the belief to take away and build within themselves.
“I just think that role models is everything…What we have seen with the lionesses since they have won the euros in 2022, is an enormous surge in popularity. Girls just seeing that one this is possible but two this is cool.”
“So having female role models that can go into school is just, you can change someone’s perception like that…You can’t underestimate role models”
We asked Ella if she had seen first hand the impact of the lionesses winning the euros first hand, she goes on to explain the experience she has had when running community football sessions.
“5 or 6 years ago all the girls would have the men’s teams on the back of their shorts, and now that’s rare like all the girls have got the female players on the back of their shirt.”
“Now they have got their female role models and that just wasn’t the case…I think it’s the most amazing thing in the world!”
Where Ella sees football in 5-10 years:
Due to the quick pace in the growth of women’s football, it is so important to look back on how far the women’s game has come. However there are still many things that need to be improved on within women’s football.
We asked Ella where she would like to see women’s football in 5-10 years time.
“I would like to see participation increase. I think we can match if not surpass the amount of boys that play football in the country… As we do that, providing that there is investment in like the structures and facilities that we need and like the clubs… I think that we can create a very thriving grassroots football community.”
What makes football so special to her:
One of our main goals within Beyond The Pitch is to raise awareness of the significant stories within the women’s football industry through our passion for the game, because we all have the ambition to raise the profile of the female game. We aim to ask each of our guests what makes football so special to them, this is how Ella answered that specific question.
“For me personally it’s been a community throughout my life… wherever I have gone…I have always had a football team I can find and go to… Every single person I have ever played with has been just on the same wavelength because we all just play football and its just such a connecter and as I have mentioned it is just so good for mental health… for me women’s football is just my choice of activity that makes me feel good and is just played a really important role in my life.”
Ella’s personal advice for someone who is trying to stay engaged in sports:
“Find the right thing for you, not all sport and physical activity is for you… just try and take the pressure off… try and do it in a safe space… do things with a friend… the more pressure you can take of yourself to perform at a certain level the easier it is… you will feel the benefits.”
Ella’s personal advice for when you have a lack of motivation to continue to do what you are passionate about:
“Even if you love what you do you are going to have days where you lack motivation… This is my favourite quote ever and it’s the quote that made me start up my business: If you don’t do it, it will remain undone for the rest of eternity. And for me that is like if I don’t do what I’m doing now with our goal and create this nobody else will do it the way that I do it.”
Everyone at Beyond The Pitch would like to show their gratitude to Ella Williams for taking the time to speak with us on her personal experiences and advice for those young girls and women who may want to be more involved or have disengaged from sports.
You can watch the full episode here:
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/KT5oYOkDlJE?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0
Photo: Ella Williams
