SEASON meets: Rachel Yankey on the historic Lionesses, motherhood, and rewriting football together
Words Abbie Claxton
Hazy heads and scratchy voices the day after the Lionesses brought football home, I sat down with one of the greatest players to have represented England, Rachel Yankey MBE. ‘It’s just mad. I don’t think I have any words,’ she says first. With a lot still to shout about in the women's game, it seemed only natural to relish in the highs, especially as the footballer-turned-coach and former Ceebies host helped elevate the sport to a new level, and focus on pushing for diversity across the board. Yankey, 42, is also an ambassador for Starling Bank, alongside two Euro 2022-winning Lionesses Lauren Hemp and Jill Scott, who recently launched the first ever Women’s Fantasy Football Game.
Beginning her career at Mill Hill, Yankey joined Arsenal aged 16 and made history by becoming the first female professional footballer registered in England in 2000 when she signed for Fulham Ladies. At her clubs Arsenal, Fulham, Birmingham City, and Notts County (plus a brief stint with the New Jersey Wildcats), the breathtaking winger’s goal-scoring prowess led to an incredible trophy haul – five Women’s Premier League Championships, two Women’s Super League Championships, 11 FA Women’s Cups, seven Women’s Premier League Cups, and one UEFA Women’s Cup. Breaking Peter Shilton’s all-time England appearance record with blistering pace and intelligent off-the-ball play, Yankey got 129 caps and scored 19 times for her country between 1997 and 2013. The half English, half Ghanian record-breaker was also part of the Team GB team at London 2012.
Yankey and I thanked the England squad on and off the pitch for being pioneers of change. Fuelled by her love for the game and her children, I was so excited to bask in the nation falling in love with women's football. We talked about maternal rights, fantasy football, and why the legacy of the game is just as important as this historic win.
Abbie Claxton: The Lionesses brought it home! What was your standout moment of the tournament?
Rachel Yankey: I think the Spain game, the fight back… Spain was the better team for me and England demonstrated grit, determination and a definitive never say die attitude, we weren’t going to lose that game. After Spain got themselves in front, they fully fought their way back in there and that for me was the game I thought yeah we can win this.
Abbie Claxton: Player of the season?
Rachel Yankey: You have to give it to Beth Mead, her whole season with Arsenal, to win an entire tournament is one thing but to finish it off with top goal scorer is something else.
Abbie Claxton: Has your daughter got her first football boots yet?
Rachel Yankey: No football boots yet but she has been to her first few games. She was an Austria fan at Germany vs Austria, chose the red team, good girl. She’s been singing and dancing since we won so she’s properly tired today.
Abbie Claxton: She might be England’s lucky charm. Do you remember your first pair of boots?
Rachel Yankey: Either Reeboks or a pair of New Balance. I remember the Reeboks because I wanted to be Ryan Giggs when I was little despite Ian Wright always being my hero.
Abbie Claxton: You’re a huge role model and girls are now looking to be the next Bronze, Mead, Russo. What do you think we can do in schools to make sure girls have the same chances as boys in the next generation?
“Growing up, Ian Wright was always my role model but I didn’t have much of a choice because I didn’t see any women playing. When I’ve spent time coaching, both boys and girls are interested in the game, so ultimately the goal is to normalise the game in the same way we look at men’s football. We need to inspire our girls to play, to take up roles in the game, and educate young boys that women can and will work in this environment”
Abbie Claxton: I 100 percent agree. The UEFA’s Women's Euros 2022 final was the most watched women’s football game ever in the UK.
Rachel Yankey: It goes to show that if the media value the game in the same way they value men’s football, people will look. The talent is no different. This year our game had visibility and it felt like a celebration of European football - the energy was unmatched.
Abbie Claxton: It’s fair to say the Lionesses have rewritten women's football. How do we keep this momentum going?
Rachel Yankey: I hope that those who went to the games and watched on TV find out where their local women’s team is, do the research, and get bums on seats in the stadium. At a grassroots level, we need to improve progression and opportunity for young girls coming through but this time we do have visibility. It’s no longer ‘can I play?’ it’s ‘where can I play?’
Abbie Claxton: Talk to me about your work with Starling on the first Women’s Fantasy Football game, it looks as if it’s been a huge component of this tournament's success.
Rachel Yankey: I was down at one of the fan zones before a match and a guy came up to me and asked, ‘What do you think of my team?’ It didn’t click that he was talking about his Fantasy Football game and I was gobsmacked because he was so invested. I couldn’t believe it hadn’t been done in England before. I know the kids will want to play it and I know how invested the adults are so it’s just brilliant.
Abbie Claxton: Women’s football will be normalised and recognised as equal. I wanted to ask about your early football career – how did you find getting into it?
Rachel Yankey: I used to play football for the boy’s team under the name ‘Ray’ after getting my head shaved with some of my mates when I was eight. None of the other players knew I was a girl and which was quite easy to get away with because of people's perception of football. I just wanted to play, there was no statement or motive. The most difficult part for me was when I was moved to a girl’s team after a parent found out. My coach, Tony Chelsea (the catalyst of my career) helped me out by getting me to Mill Hill. When I joined, I looked like a boy so when I went to tournaments, parents would say very inappropriate things like ‘Pull down your shorts and prove you’re a girl.’ I wanted to go back to the boy’s team and found it incredibly tricky to break through that.
Abbie Claxton: It’s sad that women are judged through a different lens.
Rachel Yankey: If you’re good at something in this country as a woman, they bring you down. Playing for the girl’s team came with more questions and judgment but I learned to deal with it fast and that probably helped me in my future with other managers.
Abbie Claxton: How have you found being a mother whilst being a professional footballer and coach? Does it influence the way you approach your work now?
Rachel Yankey: You’d think that you’d be supported with maternal rights in women’s football but you weren’t when I was starting my career. It’s a testament to mothers across the WSL who still play. Mary Phillip, my flatmate and English international, had two young boys whilst playing professionally for Fulham. We used to spend so much time away and now being a mother myself, I am in awe of the work she did to maintain both. We push for so much in women's football but how much do we actually value the mothers in our team? We didn’t have maternity rights in our contracts back then. Mary told me if it wasn’t for her Fulham manager looking after her son, she never would’ve gone back into professional football. I hope that these conversations are happening at a higher level now.
Abbie Claxton: Finally, What do you want to see next from women's football?
Rachel Yankey: More opportunities for young girls, from all different backgrounds from all different parts of the country. Attendance to the games is key, we want to see high-level capacity across the board.
Photography Madeleine Penfold courtesy of Third City