The Lionesses, England’s national women’s football team, have signed a shirt belonging to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as part of a drive to get all girls playing football at school.
The shirt, which was signed by the entire Lionesses squad, was presented to the Prime Minister at a Downing Street event on Wednesday. The event was part of the government’s new campaign to get all girls playing football at school.
The campaign, which is being led by the Football Association (FA), aims to get more girls playing football in schools across the country. It is part of the government’s wider commitment to get more people playing sport and to tackle the gender gap in sport.
The Prime Minister said: “I’m delighted to be here today to launch this important campaign. We want to make sure that all girls have the opportunity to play football and to enjoy the many benefits that come with it.
“This is about more than just sport. It’s about giving girls the confidence to take on new challenges, to develop their skills and to reach their potential.”
The campaign will focus on providing more opportunities for girls to play football in schools, as well as encouraging more girls to take up coaching and refereeing roles. It will also look to increase the number of female role models in the game, such as Lionesses players and coaches.
The FA’s Chief Executive, Mark Bullingham, said: “We are delighted to be working with the government on this important campaign. We know that there is a huge appetite for girls to play football and we want to make sure that they have the opportunity to do so.
“We are committed to making sure that football is open to all and that girls have the same opportunities as boys to play, coach and referee the game.”
The campaign is part of the government’s wider commitment to get more people playing sport and to tackle the gender gap in sport. It follows the launch of the Women’s Sport Strategy in 2018, which set out a range of measures to increase the number of women and girls playing sport.
The government has also committed to investing £1.5 billion in grassroots sport over the next five years, with a particular focus on getting more girls playing sport.
The Prime Minister’s shirt signing is the latest in a series of initiatives to get more girls playing football. The FA has recently launched a new Girls’ Football Week, which will run from the 8th to the 14th of March. The week will feature a range of activities and events to encourage more girls to get involved in the game.
The government’s campaign to get more girls playing football is part of a wider effort to get more people playing sport and to tackle the gender gap in sport. It is hoped that the campaign will help to create a more inclusive and diverse environment in sport, and to ensure that all girls have the opportunity to play football and to reach their potential.
