26/08/2023
"Spanish womenfootball team closes doors!"
"Wait untill womenfootball gets professional."
This is what you heared when the womenfootball game was started to grow more professional... ''wait until there gets more money, fame and career perspective involved. Then it will show that everyone will choose for themselves, the same as the mensgame evolved.''
The last week was a vulcano errupting of mixed feelings, unexpected moves and different acts of class, to show the true power Football has to make impact:
Power to Fear or Inspire
What is real power? Is it the position you hold? Some want the leadership position because of its power, translated in status, money and decisionmaking authority. Others see a leadership position as the oppurtunity to make good changes. What is a fact is the younger generation will always look into these people in leadership (aka rolemodels) in how they deal with challenges, adversity as well as in victories. And with some of them it will be lasered into their dreams if they are inspired to become a leader also..
"Performance or Purpise, you can't choose both"
Everything for the win, in the end it's all about the money, it's the professional game, you have to choose the right battles, be smart and think of your career'' While all of these are contrary to the beliefs we all want to install in our children as common sense, like ''respect everyone, speak out for yourself, be nice and include don't boss others'' somehow that changes when they have to enter the adult society, where they have to learn to behave in the ''real society'' or ''professional world''
Powerplay
Womenfootball became more professional these last 5 years and accelerating growth fast. They became professionals, making good salaries and created a platform of followers to inspire and influence. The Spanish women team entertained the professional footballworld with their way of playing. They won gold! Only to see the spotlight been taken away by another unwanted battle for power. And amidst their ''peaking years'' they decided to stand up and speak up for something more important than money, status and their own. And even after speaking up before! (and some loosing the peak moments in their career) they did not blink to give up their career for something we all call as common sense: Respect and Equality, Inclusiveness. All the common things football and its sponsors associate proudly with, but each challenged for action or speaking up now.
Its not about Rubiales
And while we all see the damage Rubiales made, it is the people following and choosing leadership that can choose the real impact such actions continue to have. Because it goes so much further than the battle between this Spanish womenteam and Rubiales. This is about the environment we all choose to work in, as well have our children be inspired to follow.
Why to me this Spanish women team shows to me true Power and Inspirational Leadership:
1.Performance. By topsport law, they won gold. They are best in the world!
2.How. They did it in a way leaving (professional) sportsfans entertained by HOW they played and continued (even after a big defeat) to play.
3.Rolrmodels. They did choose not to let the battle of Equality, or Rolemodelling pass. It could have been more convinient for their careers to just let this ''small moment'' pass.
They could ''finally'' focus on cashing in after this win,but they unanimously stepped down of National team duty as long as this toxic environment would continue.What are we going to do? and what are we going to tell them?And now they leave it up to us... to be inspired to join them. To fight against them calling them woke, unimportant fights, ''it was only a kiss''
"These women close doors"
They leave us now in discomfort, to choose what we dicide to tell our kids about this defining moment. The FIFA president Gianni Infantino says: ''choose the right battles'' but it is upto us to decide, what are the right battles? Are they to open doors to our own careers, or to a room of more succes and status? Or is it to choose the battles you know they are for the right of common sense? Maybe these women show us what we really would love football to be. The power to speak up, inspire, perform and expect to do it in an evironment where we all would love ourselves AND our children to work in... That is true POWER, that is Inspiring and Stretching Leadership!To be the best in the World and still willing to give it up for the right thing...
These women are closing Doors.. to an environment they don't longer aspire to be!
What are you going to tell them?
