Forget The FA's 'Sexist' World Cup Tweet, Inspiring Advert Shows How To Talk About Women In Football
Forget The FA's 'Sexist' World Cup Tweet, Here's How To Talk About Women In Football
Rachel Moss— The Huffington Post UK
As the FA is caught up in a sexism row over a "breathtakingly sexist" tweet posted from England's official account, a video with a far more positive message about women's football has been released.
The heartwarming video aims to inspire young girls to pursue their love of football and has been created by SSE, which is sponsoring the Women's FA Cup.
The video, which shows girls proudly pumping footballs and polishing their trophies, invites children to apply to become an official ball carrier or trophy escort at the Women’s FA Cup Final on 1 August.
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SSE managing director of corporate affairs Alan Young has said the energy company wished to sponsor the Women's FA Cup to inspire more girls to participate in football.
"SSE’s investment will help drive the women’s game forward and together with The FA we will help continue to grow the sport, giving thousands more girls regular access to the beautiful game."
The video was released on Monday, the same day that a tweet from the England account sparked outrage online.
The message, which has now been deleted, read: "Our #Lionesses go back to being mothers, partners and daughters today, but they have taken on another title - heroes."
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A screenshot of the tweet
The tweet linked to an article about the players flying home, which had a similar introduction.
Although the offending tweet and opening paragraph of the story were quickly removed, many Twitter users re-posted the content and criticised the message for undermining the England Women's team, who came third in the tournament.
The FA, which manages the England team's Twitter account, said in statement: "The full story was a wider homecoming feature attempting to reflect the many personal stories within the playing squad as has been told throughout the course of the tournament.
"However, we understand that an element of the story appears to have been taken out of context and the opening paragraph was subsequently revised to reflect that fact."
Positon: Goalkeeper Club: Manchester City Caps: 43 Age: 30 Fast Fact: Bardsley was born and raised in California but qualifies for the England squad through family connections to Stockport. (credit:Richard Heathcote via Getty Images)
Carly Telford(02 of23)
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Position: Goalkeeper Club: Notts County Caps: 5 Age: 27 Fast Fact: When she was at Leeds, Telford was named player of the match in the 2008 FA Cup final, even though Leeds lost 4-1 to Arsenal. (credit:Jon Buckle - The FA via Getty Images)
Siobhan Chamberlain(03 of23)
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Position: Goalkeeper Club: Arsenal Age: 31 Fast Fact: Chamberlain has the same surname as Arsenal men's player Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and the same birthday. (credit:David Price via Getty Images)
Lucy Bronze(04 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Manchester City Caps: 16 Age: 23 Fast Fact: Bronze signed from Liverpool in November but missed the first three matches of City's season after undergoing knee surgery. She's said it was a "big relief" to make the squad after the set back. (credit:GEOFF ROBINS via Getty Images)
Laura Bassett(05 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Notts County Caps: 49 Age: 31 Fast Fact: According to the BBC, when she's not playing footie, Bassett tests her teammates knowledge as the squad's quiz master. (credit:Matt Lewis - The FA via Getty Images)
Alex Scott(06 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Arsenal Caps: 123 Age: 30 Fast Fact: Scott discovered her love of music while she was recovering from an injury and now picks the tunes the ladies listen to in the dressing room. (credit:Ben Hoskins - The FA via Getty Images)
Alex Greenwood (07 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Notts County Caps: 12 Age: 21 Fast Fact: Despite being a Liverpool supporter, Greenwood joined Everton when she was just eight years old. She ended her 13 year association with the team when she joined Notts County last January. (credit:Jon Buckle - The FA via Getty Images)
Steph Houghton(08 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Manchester City Caps: 53 Age: 27 Fast Fact: Despite playing in defence, Houghton scored in all three of team GB's group matches in the 2012 Olympics. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Claire Rafferty(09 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Chelsea Caps: 9 Age: 26 Fast Fact: When she's not playing football, Rafferty is an analyst at Deutsche Bank. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Katie Chapman(10 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Chelsea Caps: 85 Age: 32 Fast Fact: Chapman is one of only two mothers on the England team. She has three children: Harvey, 12, Riley, six and baby Zachary. (credit:GEOFF ROBINS via Getty Images)
Casey Stoney (11 of23)
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Position: Defender Club: Arsenal Caps: 118 Age: 32 Fast Fact: Alongside training, Stoney and her partner (former Lincoln Ladies player Megan Harris) have been busy caring caring for their six-month-old twins, Teddy and Tilly. (credit:Ben Hoskins - The FA via Getty Images)
Jade Moore(12 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Birmingham City Caps: 16 Age: 24 Fast Fact: When Moore was 18 she won a Football Association scholarship to train at Loughborough University. Once there, a routine screening revealed she had two holes in her heart but she was soon back playing after corrective surgery. (credit:Clint Hughes - The FA via Getty Images)
Jordan Nobbs(13 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Arsenal Caps: 21 Age: 22 Fast Fact: Nobbs is the daughter of former Hartlepool player Keith Nobbs. (credit:Matt Lewis - The FA via Getty Images)
Jo Potter (14 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Birmingham City Caps: 19 Age: 30 Fast Fact: Potter's recall to the England squad comes after a seven-year absence. (credit:Nick Taylor - The FA via Getty Images)
Jill Scott(15 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Manchester City Caps: 90 Age: 28 Fast Fact: She's no stranger to silverware, having been on the teams that won the Women’s FA Cup in 2010 and the League Cup in 2008. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Fara Williams(16 of23)
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Position: Midfielder Club: Liverpool Caps: 139 Age: 31 Fast Fact: Williams has more caps under her belt than any other player in the team. (credit:Tom Dulat - The FA via Getty Images)
Eniola Aluko(17 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Chelsea Caps: 90 Age: 28 Fast Fact: Qualified lawyer Aluko will be writing a regular column for the BBC throughout the World Cup. (credit:Tom Dulat - The FA via Getty Images)
Karen Carney (18 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Birmingham City Caps: 103 Age: 27 Fast Fact: Earlier this year, Carney said suffering from depression almost made her give up football. But, she said, wanting to be a good role model to her niece got her back in the game. (credit:Christopher Lee - The FA via Getty Images)
Toni Duggan(19 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Manchester City Caps: 25 Age: 23 Fast Fact: Duggan scored the Women's Super League's goal of the season in 2014 against Chelsea. (credit:Dave Thompson - The FA via Getty Images)
Fran Kirby(20 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Reading Caps: 8 Age: 21 Fast Fact: Kirby returned to football last season following a four year absence after her mother's death. She's said she's determined to make her late mother proud in the World Cup. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Lianne Sanderson(21 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Arsenal Caps: 46 Age: 27 Fast Fact: Sanderson is something of a globe-trotter having played for clubs in the US, Spain and Cyprus. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Ellen White (22 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Notts County Caps: 50 Age: 25 Fast Fact: White is back on top form after having damaged a cruciate ligament in her knee during a pre-season friendly against Durham last year. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Jodie Taylor (23 of23)
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Position: Forward Club: Portland Thorns Caps: 8 Age: 28 Fast Fact: She may have began her career with local team Tranmere Rovers, but Taylor has since played for major clubs in the US, Canada and Australia. (credit:Dave Thompson - The FA via Getty Images)