Who started the Institute?
Hi, I’m Natalie. I am a life-long advocate for the women’s game and sport management professor at East TN State University in the United States. When I was 15, inspired by the 1999 WWC, I started a website called Ultimate Women's Soccer Links, a pre-google place to find every women's soccer website on the web. It was so fun and through it, I met some pretty amazing people. The Women's International Football Institute is my bridge between that girl and all the stories I've heard from the women's football community since.
Over the years, I’ve felt such a connection to our women’s football community and along the way, experiencing women’s matches around the globe, working in women’s professional soccer, and coaching at various levels grew my desire to give back and help grow and improve our game. However, this website isn’t about my experiences, this website is inspired by hundreds of stories I’ve heard around the world. This institute is dedicated to the women in Johnson City, Dunedin, Granada, Paris, Fortaleza, and countless other cities, who felt isolated in their passion and efforts for our beautiful game. I hope the resources provided by WIFI will help.
For the Game,
Natalie Smith, WIFI Founder
What is the Women’s International Football Institute?
WIFI’s Vision: Our vision is that every person across the globe involved in women and girls’ football will be and feel supported and connected. Knowledge will flow freely across sectors and be used to improve the women’s game.
This Institute is for the community team equipment manager in Galway. The coach in an after school program in Karachi. The tournament organizer in Yaoundé. These individuals are often ahead of their time, visioning a future of women’s football that we have only started to see come to fruition. For decades, those at the top of football have paid little notice to women’s football, and even now, they desire to keep the power for themselves. But what about these individuals doing the real work? They often feel alone and isolated in their love of women’s football. This website hopefully helps all of us see we are not alone. It is about connecting people from all walks of life and at all levels of the game. It is about giving money directly to those who need it to develop the women's game. It is about making knowledge more easily accessible to everyone interested. It is about showing the world how many of us are out there, every day giving to our game in ways that may not seem like a lot, but in total, is the reason we are where we are. We are together in this fight for our game. Let’s get connected.
Thank you for joining us on this journey to connect the community and give the power back to the people who work tirelessly, far from the spotlight, to make women’s football a truly beautiful game.
Can I join the Institute?
Yes! We would love collaborators. You can email us at womensfootballinstitute@gmail.com with ideas or opportunities.
