Laura McAllister: Former Wales captain and FIFA Council candidate vows to improve inclusivity in football
Former Wales captain McAllister nominated for UEFA’s next female representative on the FIFA Council; "I'd be arrogant to say so, but I want diverse and inclusive voices to be heard at the top table of football."
Friday 4 December 2020 08:58, UK
Former Wales captain and FIFA Council candidate Laura McAllister says she is "not arrogant enough to think she can change FIFA overnight".
The 56-year old, who served as deputy chair of UEFA's women's football committee since 2017 and is a former Sport Wales chair, has embarked on three months of campaigning to seek election to the FIFA Council after
If she is successful on March 2 next year, she will become one of the most influential female administrators in football.
McAllister, a former Cardiff City Ladies player, was nominated by the Football Association of Wales earlier this week and has been endorsed by the FAs of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
To win the FIFA Council's UEFA seat, one of six global seats reserved for female members, it's likely McAllister will go head-to-head against Italy's Evelina Christillin - and she explained to Sky Sports News why she would be right for the job.
"I have many assets I hope to bring to the role," McAllister said. "Key is that I was a former player at International level so I understand what that entails.
"I've also been in governance for two decades, so I would be a voice for UEFA, a voice for women.
"I also believe coming from a nation like Wales could be a good thing. We are a smaller nation, probably middle tier, so I can understand what the 'big' nations want while also knowing what smaller nations need.
"I'm also passionate about the grassroots of the game. We have done some great work with that in Wales for both boys and girls, men and women."
"I can't change things overnight," McAllister added. "I'd be arrogant to say so, but I want diverse and inclusive voices to be heard at the top table of football."
McAllister is passionate about furthering inclusivity and diversity within football and believes the time has come to stop talking and start delivering.
She wants to highlight the insecurity around the women's game which has been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic, and also wants to tackle and address racial structures within the game so that at the top end of administration Black, Asian and other ethnic minorities are represented and that a great and louder voice can be heard.
She is also passionate about LGBT inclusion within football and while she acknowledges within the women's game this inclusion is being witnessed, it's less so in the men's game and it needs addressing.
"We have a responsibility to be who we are and not be someone else," she said. "Boys and girls who identify as LGBT for example need to be able to see people like them so that they can feel inspired to one day be in that position."
