The 3 Women Coaching in the NWSL and Why There Aren’t More
We are so excited about the beginning of the 2023 NWSL season! And there is a lot to talk about, including this year’s coaches. We’ve gone over the coaches new to the NWSL this season, so our focus today will be on women coaching in the NWSL. The league consists of 12 teams with only three female coaches. Therefore, we need to discuss the lack of female coaching representation in a women’s league. Nonetheless, these women are trailblazers in coaching, and we should celebrate their achievements. So, here are the women coaching in the NWSL this season!
Freya Coombe
Our first female coach is Freya Coombe leading Angel City FC. Coombe is no stranger to the NWSL, as she previously coached NJ/NY Gotham FC for a good period in the 2019 season. Coombe proved herself quickly, and after Gotham FC initially hired her as interim head coach, she was made permanent. That proved a great decision for the team as Coombe led them to the 2020 Challenge Cup Semi-Finals and 2021 Challenge Cup Final.
With Angel City FC, Coombe’s performance has been satisfactory and is likely to improve even more. We can’t ignore the many injuries that happened at the club, yet Coombe made her team fight till the end of the season. With the new season, fans hope to see how Coombe will handle the team. In the 2022 season, Coombe was criticized for a lack of rotation of the starting XI. So we can only wait and see if this will change this season or not.
Casey Stoney
There is one thing for sure, and that is the fact that Casey Stoney had a great season last year. We can even call it an extraordinary season for her and San Diego Wave FC. Stoney became the first coach of an NWSL expansion team to reach playoffs in the inaugural season.
Even though San Diego Wave FC wasn’t crowned champions, Stoney brought home an award of her own. She was named the 2022 NWSL Coach of the Year. The former English National Team player proved she is up to the job. We all expect that she will do the same this season, if not more.
Laura Harvey
The third coach on our list of women coaching NWSL teams this season is OL Reign’s Laura Harvey, whose name is widely known in women’s soccer. Her fame doesn’t stop at the club team level but at the national level. Harvey was the head coach of the U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team, and her team’s performance is proof of her coaching talent. They had a seven-game unbeaten streak, and this was no easy matter.
Despite her many achievements, we can tell that Harvey wants more. The OL Reign coach is dreaming of winning the club’s first NWSL Championship. This is a possibility with someone like Harvey and the career she had. Will the 2023 NWSL season be the one she is waiting for? We will see how she will lead the team through this season.
A Lack of Female Representation in Coaching
No one can deny that these three women are all incredible coaches. But this doesn’t change the fact that we need to address the lack of female coaches in the NWSL and women’s soccer in general.
It starts with changing the stigma that women can’t be head coaches. “A lot of people would come up and shake the hand of a male member of staff thinking they were the head coach when it was actually [me],” said Freya Coombe in an interview with Refinery 29.
It is frustrating that a sport for women ends up being male-dominated. This inequality in the sport exists because of other forms of inequality. However, one way to improve this could be to award more scholarships to female players who want to join the coaching world. Girls will never get the chance to have many female coaches like Harvey, Coombe, and Stoney if we don’t reach out and encourage those who need just one opportunity.
We are glad that women’s soccer is growing, and we have incredible female soccer players who inspire many young girls. But aren’t girls allowed to be coaches too? How will we inspire them when we have nine male coaches in a women’s league with 12 teams?
Even when the number of teams increased from ten to 12, and the two new teams hired female coaches, the league couldn’t even retain additional qualified female coaches. Orlando Pride’s Amanda Cromwell and Portland Thorn’s Rhian Wilkinson were both replaced by men after being fired. This is not a representation. It’s a reminder of the inequality women face.
So we celebrate the three female coaches. But we have to push for equal opportunities and treatment for women going after the same position as men.
Featured image via Getty Images
_
GIRLS SOCCER NETWORK: YOUR SOURCE FOR GIRLS SOCCER NEWS
Girls Soccer Network
Your source for girls soccer news
