Emma Hayes: Chelsea boss says 'a lot of work to do' to increase number of female coaches in football

Chelsea manager Emma Hayes believes there is still "a lot of work to do to close that gap" in terms of the ongoing lack of female coaches in football.

Only 21 women in England have a UEFA Pro Licence, which costs £9,890 to obtain, and only 10 women manage across the top two flights of women’s football.

After Brighton sacked Melissa Phillips last week, only four WSL teams have a female manager - Carla Ward (Aston Villa), Lauren Smith (Bristol City) and Rehanne Skinner (West Ham) join Hayes on the short list.

Speaking to BBC Sport, Hayes said: "We've got a lot of work to do to close that gap.

“We have to come up with more creative ways to get more women involved with coaching at younger ages, and most importantly support them through coach education. We have to think about educating players much earlier on in their careers - maybe even during international breaks when there is down time.

“I think if we want to retain female coaches in the game, we have to recognise that the opportunities are few and far between. We need to upskill more women into coaching and to do that we have to think differently about it.

“We have to commit more money to coaches, not just in the women's game, but women coaches in general."

The FA claims there was an 83% increase in the number of female coaches with Level 1 qualifications and above for the past two years and says it has dedicated grassroots coach developers as part of its strategy for the women's game.

She added: "We have to look at the cost of [the training] as a starting point. It's about £10,000 to do a Pro Licence. And the wages in the women's game are insignificant compared to the men's game.”

With the independent body ‘NewCo’ taking over the top two divisions of the women's professional game later this year, the LMA added that "significant consideration" should be given to introducing certain mandatory requirements. These could include making the employment of a qualified female head or assistant coach a mandatory requirement, a notion that Hayes supported.

"I think so… it's about creating minimum standards so that the accessibility for women to come into the game is thought about differently… getting clubs to be in position so that they have minimum standards in place to hire women into the game, be it assistant or head coach level. But doing that is a challenge," she said.

Despite wages in the women’s game paling into insignificance when compared to the men’s game, Hayes believes the women's game "is at the very beginning of becoming a humongous sport."

She said: "We're so much more front and centre, from being able to access a game on TV, to the growing numbers attending games.

"On a commercial level, the tipping point for that transition was the 2022 Euros. I'm almost certain that within the next 12 months, some clubs in England will break even and even make profit. That was unthinkable 11 years ago."

Hayes is leaving Chelsea at the end of this season to become the USA Women's National Team manager, a position widely regarded as the biggest job in women’s football.

Having already won 13 major trophies, the 47-year-old said it would be incredible if, in her 12th and final season in charge, Chelsea could win a fifth consecutive WSL title, as well as lift the Champions League for the first time.

“To keep winning, like we have done for so many years, will be a challenge," she said. “I owe it to Chelsea and those players to give them absolutely everything I’ve got.”

Looking ahead to her new job, she continued: “It’s a massive proud moment for me and my family. To be able to return to a country that I grew up coaching in, and now get the opportunity to lead that nation. Come the summer I'm sure I'll pinch myself a few times because it's the stuff dreams are made of.”

Hayes’ first challenge with the USA national team will start this summer at the Paris Olympics, a tournament which Team GB failed to qualify for.

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