Football's Leading Positions Remain Dominantly Male According to Latest Research
In a recent report by the Football Can Do More (FKM) organisation, it has been revealed that gender diversity continues to be a challenge in the top echelons of German football. The report, based on data from the AllBright reports analysing the composition of supervisory boards of DAX companies, highlights the underrepresentation of women in top management positions.
Fernando Carro, managing director of Bayer Leverkusen, emphasized the importance of diversity for the organisation and society as a whole. He stated that more women are needed in leadership positions in football. Alexander Wehrle, CEO of VfB Stuttgart, acknowledged that they are not yet where they want to be regarding gender representation in top management.
The report shows that the structure of top management in German football is typically male, German, and around 50 years old. Out of 100 executive board positions in German first and second division football clubs for the 2024/2025 season, only six were held by women. The proportion of international profiles among control body members is 3.3 percent. Out of 271 control body positions in German first and second division football clubs, 28 (10.3 percent) are held by women.
Katja Kraus, co-chair of the FKM board and the first woman to join the executive board of a football Bundesliga club, stated that the analysis is not about pointing fingers but about improving results in gender representation. She noted that despite positive discussions and efforts for change, the numbers regarding gender representation have not yet improved.
The low number of women in top German football executive roles results from a combination of structural biases, cultural norms, and institutional inertia. Football governance in Germany, led by institutions like the German Football Association (DFB), is historically male-dominated, reflecting wider trends in sports executive roles across Europe. Persistent gender stereotypes consider football an inherently male sport, creating social and professional biases that impede women’s advancement to top roles.
Improvement can be achieved through targeted policies such as gender quotas, enhanced support for women’s leadership development, proactive recruitment, and fostering an inclusive culture within football organisations. Potential ways to improve gender diversity in football executive boards include introducing mandatory or voluntary gender quotas, establishing governance policies and inclusive codes of conduct, creating leadership development programs and mentoring schemes, promoting transparency and accountability in the election and nomination processes, and supporting media and public campaigns to change perceptions about women in football leadership roles.
Despite the challenges, there are some positive signs. Four clubs in the first and second divisions of Germany have women in their top management: Schalke 04, FC St. Pauli, 1. FC Heidenheim, and Werder Bremen. These clubs serve as examples of the progress that can be made and the potential for a more inclusive future in German football.
[1] German Football Association (DFB) [2] UEFA Governance Subcommittee [4] Increased broadcasting rights and visibility of women’s football tournaments
- To address the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions in football, Fernando Carro, Managing Director of Bayer Leverkusen, suggests implementing targeted policies like gender quotas, development programs, proactive recruitment, and fostering an inclusive culture.
- Recognizing the need for improvement in gender representation, Alexander Wehrle, CEO of VfB Stuttgart, acknowledges they aren't currently where they aspire to be and expresses support for measures such as quotas, governance policies, leadership development programs, and media campaigns to change perceptions about women in football leadership roles.
- Katja Kraus, co-chair of the FKM board and the first woman to join the executive board of a German Bundesliga club, encourages football institutions like the German Football Association (DFB) to collaborate with organizations such as the UEFA Governance Subcommittee and advocate for increased broadcasting rights and visibility of women’s football tournaments to stimulate positive change in women's health, science, health-and-wellness, sports, and football.
