Aluko also addressed lack of diversity among coaches, saying: "We want to find a black Pep Guardiola or a black Jurgen Klopp"
Tuesday 7 July 2020 14:03, UK
Former England international Eni Aluko has backed the introduction of targets to increase the number of BAME individuals at the top level of sport in the UK.
A report by The Telegraph in June found that 64 per cent of tax-payer funded national sports governing bodies (NGBs) have no BAME board members.
The newspaper also found that just three per cent of board members at the NGBs are black, and that no Premier League side has a black owner, chairman or chief executive.
Aluko - who won over 100 caps for England and is now director of women's football at Aston Villa - was speaking to the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee when she was asked about imposing targets on BAME representation in boardrooms within sport.
She said: "I think at this point we have to. There has to be something intentional about change. When you rely on self-regulation and people doing it themselves, they tend to just fall back into a comfort zone of what they've always done.
"I think we do need a target - I know the 30-per-cent target was mentioned earlier. I think that's a good one in terms of it being something that you can always strive and achieve towards."
Aluko - who also played for Chelsea, Charlton and Juventus - added that her role at Villa has shown her the value of casting a wide net to recruit the best available candidates for a role, regardless of their ethnicity.
She said: "We are still seeing a glass ceiling to a certain extent from where we've gone to having great representation on the pitch. But that transition doesn't necessary reflect when it goes off the pitch into the boardroom and even in ownership.
"The way to tackle it is about recruitment; recruitment behaviour and recruitment patterns. When we are looking for the best talent, are we fishing in a wide enough pool to find that talent or are we doing what we've always done which is safe and recruiting from the people that we all know and that look like us?
"Once you fish in a wider sea, you'll be surprised at what you find in terms of the pool of talent. For me, as a new sporting director, and for owners, if you want the best talent you really should - it's in your interest - look as widely as possible."
Aluko also addressed the issue of a lack of diversity amongst coaches, highlighted by the Premier League having just one BAME manager - Wolves' Nuno Espirito Santo.
She said: "The talent base is there. There is a lot of BAME representation, certainly in academies. It says to me there is a pathway being created, but it's not rising up to the top.
"There will be great black coaches and there will be bad black coaches. The minute we judge people by their talent and their character, rather than the colour of their skin, then we're getting to where we need to get to.
"We want to find a black Pep Guardiola or a black Jurgen Klopp."
Aluko, who won the Women's Super League (WSL) three times with Chelsea, also gave her backing to the Premier League taking responsibility for the running of the women's top flight.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters is a supporter of the idea, and Aluko said: "I'm a big fan of the Premier League. What it's become is a global brand with players from all over the world. Young kids are able to support amazing teams. That's where the women's game can go. When I grew up playing it was not on TV; now it's a great product. The WSL is attracting players from all over the world.
"The minute a brand like the Premier League takes over, it will instantly take it to another level. You're already seeing that happen. If you look at the WSL, you've already got a lot of Premier League teams who've got teams in there. I think Premier League teams are seeing it's important to have an elite women's team.
"I'm a big supporter of the Premier League. That's no disrespect to the FA - I think they've done an incredible job creating the WSL."
Gay players are currently active in the men's game, says Aluko, and she believes one of them revealing their sexuality would be a "game-changer".
Asked about whether gay players have come out to their peers, Aluko nodded and said: "Knowing people and having a brother [Reading forward Sone Aluko] in the men's game, there's not an issue in the dressing room. There are gay players and they are just as respected, loved and admired amongst their teams.
"The issue is with the public - what backlash am I going to get? I think it is going to take a player to say 'this is who I am - I'm gay'. I think that will be a game-changer.
"There's a huge upside for a male player doing that. They will be admired around the world. I'm really hoping a male player will come out whilst they're playing."
