Reclaiming Narratives continued – The Rise of England’s African Lions

On November 26, the English FA announced its plan to increase their percentage of coaches, from Black, Asian, mixed and other ethnic backgrounds. Their previous target was 19% and the new target is 30%.

November is tied to the international calendar, so the fixtures provide an immediate opportunity to explore the context of the FA’s decision.

Hence, this article reviews the percentage of senior England players from minority backgrounds. The England men’s and women’s squads were announced on November 4th and 20th respectively.

The men faced Greece on the 14th in the Nations League, and the women faced the USA in a friendly on the 30^th.

Lions vs Lionesses

The men’s squad included 13 players with Black ancestry, equating to 56% of the squad. Eight started the match which equates to 73% of the first eleven, with four players each from African and Caribbean backgrounds.

In comparison, the women’s squad contained two players with Black ancestry, or 9% of the squad. Both started against the USA and Jess Carter and Jessica Naz won their 38th and 4th caps respectively.

With the men’s starting line-up at 73% and the women’s at 18%, this highlights a growth in disparity between the teams, from the figures reported by She Kicks in 2020.

Young, Gifted and Caribbean

Historically, most of England’s players from minority backgrounds descend from the Caribbean.

Moreover, November is synonymous with landmark debuts for these players. Rio Ferdinand made his international debut in November 1997 and won 81 caps. 

Kyle Walker (93 caps) and Raheem Sterling (82 caps) debuted in 2011 and 2012 respectively. Jude Bellingham (40 caps) became England men’s third youngest debutant in 2020, whilst Cole Palmer (11 caps) debuted in 2023. 

On November 29, 1978, Viv Anderson became England’s first Black international. The son of Jamaican parents won the first of 30 caps, and has the most celebrated debut in UK Black history.

England’s African Lions

To date, England have given debuts to 24 women from minority backgrounds compared to 121 men. Former Luton Town striker Brian Stein is the first England player of African descent. 

Born in South Africa, he won his sole cap in 1984 and is ninth on the men’s list. Stein is one of five ‘known’ players of African descent from the first 50 players on the list, along with John Fashanu, John Salako, Mark Walters and Ugo Ehiogu. 

There are 15 players with African ancestry from the next 50 names on the list. They include Leon Osman and Ross Barkley who are White and biracial. The growth of players with African ancestry is clearly visible.

Reclaiming Narratives

In summary, the representation of players from minority backgrounds continues to grow in England’s senior teams. However, the female representation of these players is stagnant, and is a development issue for the English FA to seek answers to. Since 1978, players with Caribbean ancestry have dominated other minority segments. This is in part due to thediaspora of the Windrush generation.

Notwithstanding, the current decade has seen the emergence of England players with African ancestry. 

Eight out of the last 20 male debutants, are players with African ancestry. So perhaps the remainder of this decade, will see a new narrative of black history, written in English football.

By Richard Flash

Richard Flash is a senior lecturer in football and sport business management. He has 30 years of industry experience from playing professional sport, managing sport businesses and higher education leadership.

His research focuses on the racisms faced by the Premier League’s Black footballers, and he is a consultant to the anti-racism charities Show Racism the Red Card and The Football Black List.