UCFB hosts successful Women in Sport conferences at Wembley and Manchester

“Women have a voice, and they need to have that voice, and they can do that through the world of sport. It connects people in ways that other trades don’t.”

These are the words spoken from one of the industry expert guests at our Women in Sport conferences.

The two conferences, held at UCFB Wembley and UCFB Manchester, were held the same week as 2025’s International Women’s Day, and aim to pursue UCFB’s goal of increasing female involvement across the football and wider sports industry.

Many UCFB alumnae were welcomed back for the events, including:

• Halle Cotterall – BA (Hons) Sports Business and Sports Broadcasting – Studio Graphics Operator at Sky
• Hayley Reed – BA (Hons) Football Business and Marketing – Marketing Manager at England and Wales Cricket Board
• Samantha Richards – BA (Hons) Multimedia Sports Journalism – Team Operations Manager at Tottenham Hotspur Women

As well as this, we had many industry experts join us, such as:

• Monique Choudhuri – Board Director for Women in Football
• Rachel Robinson – W&G Community Champion at Manchester FA
• Charlotte Atkinson-Jones – Senior Campaigns Manager at England Rugby

Throughout the events, UCFB’s female students were being inspired to work towards that dream career within the sports industry.

Many pieces of advice were offered to the students who attended.

“Any young woman who wants a career in sport; be bold, be brave.”

“It’s really important for young females who are wanting to push their careers forwards to come to events like this. Networking, relationships, that is where you’re going to build those foundations to build your career.”

“Not many people make it to an elite-athlete level, but there are thousands of people working in sport, so really consider; where do your strengths lie? And how can I take that into a sporting world?”

“We can all get caught up in our own minds and our own goals and ambitions, and think that it’s not aways achievable. But actually when you see that people have overcome the boundaries that they have, and are in roles in which they want to pursue, it actually gives you a boost of confidence to think that I can do that too.”

Find out where UCFB’s incredible female graduates have gone on to gain careers across the football and wider sports industry.