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Midweek, Bay Collective revealed the appointment of Anja van Ginhoven, the English national team's managerial lead under head coach Sarina Wiegman, to serve as their overseer of worldwide women's football activities. The new collective club ownership initiative, featuring Bay FC of San Francisco as the initial addition among its holdings, has previously engaged in hiring individuals from the English FA.

The selection earlier this year of Kay Cossington, the prominent former FA technical director, to the CEO role was a signal of intent from Bay Collective. She is deeply familiar with female football thoroughly and now has put together a leadership team with a deep understanding of the history of women's football and laden with experience.

She marks the third key figure of Wiegman’s setup to depart in the current year, with the chief executive leaving before the European Championships and deputy manager, Veurink, stepping down to become head coach of Holland, but her decision came sooner.

Leaving was a shock to the system, but “I had decided to leave the FA well in advance”, she explains. “The terms lasting four years, exactly like Arjan and Sarina had. Upon their extension, I previously indicated I was uncertain whether I would. I had grown accustomed to the notion that after the European Championship I wouldn’t be part of England any more.”

The European Championship was an emotional competition due to that. “I remember very clearly, vividly, speaking with Sarina in which I informed her about my decision and we then remarked: ‘There’s just one dream, how incredible it would be if we were to win the European Championship?’ In reality, dreams don't hopes materialize every day however, absolutely incredibly, it actually happened.”

Sitting in an orange T-shirt, Van Ginhoven has divided loyalties following her stint working in England, during which she contributed to securing consecutive European championships and worked within the manager's team during the Dutch victory in the 2017 European Championship.

“The English side will always hold an emotional connection for me. So, it will be challenging, especially with the knowledge that the squad are scheduled to come for the international camp shortly,” she comments. “In matches between England and the Netherlands, which side do I back? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, but tomorrow I'll be in white.”

In a speedboat, you can pivot and accelerate swiftly. In a lean group like this one, that is simple to achieve.

The club was not part of the equation when the organisational wizard determined that a new chapter was needed, however the opportunity arose perfectly. The chief executive began assembling the team and common principles were key.

“Essentially upon meeting we met we experienced an instant connection,” states Van Ginhoven. “There was immediate understanding. Our conversations have been thorough on various topics concerning growing the sport and the methods we believe are correct.”

Cossington and Van Ginhoven are not the only figures to relocate from well-known positions in the European game for a blank sheet of paper across the Atlantic. The Spanish club's female football technical lead, Patricia González, has been unveiled as the organization's new global sporting director.

“I was highly interested to that strong belief in the potential within the female sport,” González explains. “I've been acquainted with Kay Cossington for many years; when I used to work at Fifa, she was the technical director of England, and it’s easy to make these decisions knowing you will have around you individuals who motivate you.”

The depth of knowledge within their group distinguishes them, notes Van Ginhoven, with Bay Collective part of a group new multi-club initiatives that have started over the past few years. “This is a key differentiator for us. It’s OK that people do things in different ways, but we definitely believe in incorporating football expertise,” she says. “The entire leadership have traveled a path in female football, throughout our careers.”

According to their online statement, the goal for the collective is to support and lead a progressive and sustainable ecosystem for women's football clubs, founded on effective practices for the diverse needs of female athletes. Succeeding in this, with everyone on the same page, without having to justify actions for why you would take certain actions, is hugely liberating.

“I liken it to transitioning from a tanker to a speedboat,” states she. “You are essentially navigating in uncharted waters – as we say in the Netherlands, I'm unsure if it translates well – and you just need to rely on your own knowledge and expertise for making correct choices. Adjusting course and speeding up is possible with a speedboat. Within a compact team such as ours, that is simple to achieve.”

She notes: “With this opportunity, we start with a blank slate to work from. Personally, our work involves shaping the sport on a much broader level and that white paper permits you to undertake whatever you want, within the rules of the game. That’s the beauty of what we are building together.”

The ambition is high, the management are voicing opinions players and fans want to hear and it will be compelling to follow the development of the collective, the club and future additions to the group.

To get a sense of future plans, what factors are essential of a high-performance environment? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve