Today’s episode of Lionesses: Down Under connected by EE sees Jill Scott and Kyle Walker joined by Lotte Wubben-Moy to discuss the latest news from camp, and her passion for getting more young girls into football.
LOTTE WUBBEN-MOY
On the Let Girls Play campaign and ensuring girls have equal access to football:
“Visibility is so important. The fact that we’re on TV and young kids can look up to us and dream, it’s what every current and past Lioness would have liked to have had when we were kids. So I think we’re just doing what we wish we could have done for our young selves and do our young selves credit.”
“There’s a lot of talk that can happen around the subject. And quite often, talk can cloud our ability for action. Last summer we obviously spoke a lot about it but then it was the action of writing the letter to the Prime Minister and following that up with lots of meetings that ultimately got the reform through and ensured they committed £600m for girls to go to school and play football. As much as we can put it into action, that’s where the difference is made.”
On advice for schools wanting to get more involved with sport:
“Often it takes a catalyst to inspire other people. Maybe some girls haven’t ever thought of the chance to play football but then if one of their mates is doing it, they might think they want to try it too. Do it in a group, do it together. Ultimately that’s when you get the most enjoyment out of it, when you’re sharing experiences like we are here together as a team. Obviously, we’re a few levels up but that’s not to say that participation at school and grassroots isn’t equally as important as it is at the top level and all the way through.”
On why she’s so passionate about getting girls into football:
“You don’t have to end with becoming professional. All the skills I learnt when I was a young player – confidence, being able to communicate – those soft skills are so important. That’s part of the reason why we as a Lionesses team are so passionate about getting every young girl the access at school to play football. It’s because of how amazing it is to be empowered by other young women. To be comfortable within yourself playing football and playing sport, it’s so underrated.”
On the idea behind her Doodle Diary:
“As much as we can remove barriers to entry, particularly in football, is a good thing. Some people learn visually, some learn reading books. But also, when you look at following a football game, kids might not sit down for 90 minutes but they might interact with a picture of someone scoring a goal, or a picture of an armband that a captain wears. That’s my take on getting kids involved and making it easy for them to engage with football in any way possible.”
On the creative similarities between art and football:
“My approach to art and doodling is that anyone can do it. You can probably just doodle on a napkin and it would be something exciting, something cool. That’s my take on it and what I enjoy so much about it, the fact that anyone can do it and it’s what you make of it. To me the lines of creativity are blurred, you step on the pitch, you’re creating passes. You see Keira [Walsh] picking out a pass, that’s a creation in itself and that lives on as hers. We share it with other people, the same way we share in art museums or, like myself, sharing my art on Instagram for everyone to see. I would like to remove barriers to art and creativity as much as possible. It’s the same with football, take all the red tape away and enjoy the games. The games are free to watch in England, people can wake up early and catch a cracking game of football.”
On her first World Cup:
“It’s mad, you dream of it as a kid. You dream of possibly seeing yourself there. The thought of actually being here now and enjoying it with people who I hold super close to my heart is really cool. My family are out here, and all my friends and family back home are supporting. And also the fans out there, it’s incredible to be able to share it with them.”
On life in camp:
“If this is winter for the Aussies then I dread to think what summer is like because we were sweating it out today on the pitch. Base camp is beautiful and it’s nice not to have to unpack and pack again, to just be settled. I think it’s underrated, particularly in tournament life when you’re trying to create a home away from home. Things like this [Lionesses: Down Under] and the branding around the hotel, it definitely feels like a home away from home.”
On preparations for the Denmark match:
“Like in any tournament game, we know the opponent will come out fighting and playing their best football. We’re going to go in understanding what we need to do, what our roles are. But more importantly, we’ll go in to enjoy it and know that we’ll also play our best football.”
On the increase in competitiveness at this World Cup:
“I think it’s really important to note that the gap is closing. Even seeing Haiti, how competitive they were, it was pretty amazing. And likewise with Jamaica. We want every World Cup to be as competitive as possible. In the last World Cup we saw 13-0 scorelines, I’d like to think we’re not going to see many of those this year. As much as we can see the gap closing is really encouraging. It’s what people want to see at home, they want to see competitive games and I’d like to think this World Cup will continue to give that.”
