Arsenal legend Ian Wright in latest move to promote girls’ football in schools | OneFootball

Arsenal legend and women’s football champion Ian Wright visited a London school on Wednesday to discuss how girls still face barriers in sport.

The visit marked the launch of

Made for This Game: Breaking Barriers

, a new campaign from The FA and Barclays aimed at tackling societal obstacles that prevent girls from taking part in school football.

Wright, a longstanding Barclays ambassador, visited the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in Islington to speak with pupils and staff.

Ian Wright is a familiar pundit and commentator on women’s football, and has also been promoting girls’ football from grassroots.

What are the FA doing to promote girls’ football in schools?

The Barclays Girls’ Football in Schools initiative recently hit its goal of 90% of schools offering girls equal access to football in PE at KS2 and KS3 — three years ahead of schedule. But issues including gender stereotypes, misogyny and low body confidence continue to hold many girls back from joining in.

To help address this, The FA and Barclays are rolling out new classroom resources for primary and secondary schools, covering topics from challenging gender stereotypes to supporting teenage girls’ confidence and mental wellbeing.

Sue Day, director of women’s football at The FA, said in quotes circulated to the media: “We cannot ignore the fact that societal pressures are threatening to slow the excellent progress that’s been made over the last few years. By starting these conversations for girls and boys in their formative years, I hope we can help to develop a generation of girls who truly believe that football is for them.

“It’s no use having role models in our Lionesses and the elite players of the Barclays WSL and WSL2 for girls to look up to, if they don’t feel that football is a place for them to thrive.

“There is always more to be done but I’m really proud that we’re tackling the difficult challenge of breaking down barriers head on in a bid to create a more supportive, inclusive and accepting environment for the next generation of girls and boys.”