Oli And Phoebe’s Excellent Football Adventure
Two of Britball’s top women players have just returned from Florida where they took part in a training camp that turned out to be, the experience of a football lifetime. Linebacker Phoebe Schecter (Birmingham Lions) and receiver Oli Davies (Hertfordshire Tornadoes), who are both members of the GB Lions squad, joined players from twenty countries at The Women’s World Football Games. The five day event, hosted at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, was open to players and coaches from all over the world. They took part in a range of coaching sessions, attended a series of seminars and ended the event by playing a game against their global contemporaries.
The WWFG, now in its fourth year, is the brainchild of NFL Director of Development, Sam Rapoport. A former player herself (she was a top quarterback) Sam is spearheading the drive for gender diversity in football. I asked her for her thoughts on how the event had gone.
“The Women’s Careers in Football Forum introduced more than 200 female tackle football players to careers in Football Operations. Through this event, we aimed to: 1) inspire women to apply for positions in Football Operations, 2) connect them to industry leaders and key influencers and 3) educate them on first steps to apply for these positions. We were extremely pleased with the results and the level of passion and enthusiasm displayed by all of the participants.
Since taking on this position, I’ve met with numerous league and team executives to gather feedback regarding gender diversity in the sport. One challenge consistently expressed to me is the lack of resumes submitted by female candidates. This event will begin to change that.”
It was attended by 220 players, all eager to meet fellow Ballers from around the globe, receive some top coaching and of course, make some plays. The group had a combination of abilities, so were split into three sections to ensure everyone had the opportunity to be competitive, and develop their skills and techniques. Days were split into group learning sessions, positional meetings and practice sessions all leading to the full contact 11 on 11 showdowns at the end of the week.
I asked Oli what she had taken from the event. “WWFG is a brilliant experience. It was my second time attending, so great to catch up with old friends from last year, as well as getting to know lots of new players from all over the world. I love hearing everyone's stories and about their journeys through football. The best part though is basically feeling like a pro-footballer... I love football and would play all day every day if I could, so to practice twice a day, eat and sleep football for an entire week, is just living the dream! Playing with and against so many high quality and experienced players in such an intense situation really helps elevate my game to another level, even in such a short space of time. But the highlight of the week for me was playing in the showpiece game on the main field at ESPN World, right after the pro-bowl players had finished their practice. Total adrenalin rush... As well as getting to meet and talk to a number of the players - Drew Brees, Travis Kelce, Richard Sherman, and fellow Brits Jay Ajayi of the Dolphins and Menelik Watson from the Raiders, both lovely guys!”
Oh yeah, I forget to mention that the NFL Pro Bowl was being hosted at the venue at the same time! Giving the delegates the opportunity to meet the elite players, top coaches, and importantly, the NFL staff. A key component on the agenda was the Women’s Career Forum, a series of seminars and focus groups targeted to provide information, guidance and inspiration for women looking to further their careers in football in general, and possibly within the NFL. Panthers head coach Ron Rivera spoke passionately about coaching pathways, Buffalo Bills owner Kim Pegula detailed the opportunities available in Football operations and Katie Blackburn and Scott Pioli discussed football scouting.
As this was also Phoebe’s second time at the event, I asked her for her reflections on the five days full of football activity. “This was my second experience at the Women's World Football Games. I was able to attend the first games and it was equally exciting to participate in the 4th one. The camp and quality of players have increased tenfold.
One of the experiences, that I took the most away from, was the NFL Careers Forum. It was enlightening to be able to have conversations with these women and men who have made it to the top of their fields. All of them were brutally honest about the positives and negatives about having a career with the NFL, plus it opened my eyes to jobs that I didn't even know existed. The NFL and USA Football put Women's American Football on the map, at the ProBowl! One of the most beautiful things, was to stand on the field, and look around at the 220 girls from 20 different countries, all speaking one language...football.