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Damian Prestidge
The former Juventus, England and Chelsea striker was a natural goalscorer and a leading talent in the women’s game. She won Super League and Serie A titles as well as FA Cups, and played over 100 internationals. She served as Aston Villa Women's sporting director. Off the pitch she’s a lawyer, having qualified in the US and worked in the City. She's a regular pundit and commentator on both the men's and women's game, becoming the first woman pundit on Match of the Day. She hit the headlines with her stand against the discrimination, outdated behaviour and damaging culture within the England women’s coaching set up. As well as examining the lessons any organisation can learn from the failures within the FA, she also looks at the nature of a winning team and a winning mindset, and what good leadership looks like.
Eniola Aluko is one of the leading figures in women’s football, with an impressive career both on and off the pitch. As a winger and a striker, she won the FA Cup twice, was a Premier/Super League champion three times, and was the league top-scorer with Chelsea. Following her retirement from playing, she moved into behind the scenes roles at Aston Villa and LA's Angel City FC, serving as Sporting Director at both clubs, as well as Director of Recruitment at Angel City.
Despite Eniola’s impressive achievements on the pitch, she has had an arguably higher profile off it. She was instrumental in revealing ingrained and often officially denied racism and discrimination by senior figures within the England team coaching set up, and serious problems within the wider FA. Her refusal to be silenced and willingness to stand up against outdated, offensive behaviour revealed a culture of intimidation and wilful blindness.
She wrote about her experiences in her career in her book They Don’t Teach This, which is an inspiring and personal look at achievement, identity, resilience, and teamwork. She has written regularly for The Guardian on both the men's and women's game, and also provides regular commentary on both men’s and women’s football matches in the UK and the USA.
