Hope Powell

Hope Patricia Powell, CBE (born 8 December 1966) is an English former international footballer and women's first-team manager of Brighton & Hove Albion. She was the coach of the England women's national football team and the Great Britain women's Olympic football team until August 2013. As a player, Powell won 66 caps for England, mainly as an attacking midfielder, scoring 35 goals. She made her England debut at the age of 16, and went on to play in the 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup, England's first World Cup appearance. She was also vice-captain of her country. At club level Powell played in four FA Women's Cup finals and captained Croydon to a League and Cup double in 1996. The Football Association (FA) appointed Powell as England's first-ever full-time national coach in 1998. She led the team at the 2001, 2005, 2009 and 2013 editions of the UEFA Women's Championship. After failing to qualify in 2003, she guided England to the quarter-finals of the FIFA Women's World Cup in 2007 and 2011. England's best results, reaching the final of the UEFA Women's Championship in 1984 and 2009, both featured Powell. She was a player at the former and coach at the latter. As well as managing the England senior team, Powell oversaw the whole structure from Under-15s to the Under-23s, a coach mentoring scheme and The FA’s National Player Development Centre at Loughborough University. In May 2009 Powell's administration implemented central contracts, to help players focus on full-time training and playing, without having to fit it around full-time employment. Initially 17 players signed contracts. In 2003 Powell became the first woman to achieve the UEFA Pro Licence—the highest coaching qualification available.