Stourbridge FC have partnered up with Her Game Too, to help raise awareness of sexist abuse within football.
The Black Country side have become the first Southern League club, and the first one within the Birmingham County, to join the campaign alongside a growing number of clubs from the EFL.
The club is committed to helping the cause by creating further awareness for people in the Stourbridge area and beyond the problems encountered by females in football.
Her Game Too was founded by 12 passionate female football fans who set up a campaign with the aim of raising awareness of sexism towards women in football and fighting for equality in the long run.
The group are a non-profit organisation with many aims. Some of the key ones are: create awareness, educate, research and develop a strong sense of community. Many clubs all across the country can and are encouraged now more than ever to get involved with this project.
Stourbridge Ladies social media officer Richard Clark said: “I’m very pleased to have been able to bring the partnership to fruition, and I’m proud that we are the first club in the Southern League and Birmingham area to do so.
“It’s taken a while to work through everything and to get to this point, but it was so important that we did everything right.
“I hope we are showing the way for other clubs within the Midlands both on and off the pitch. Knowing personally how the process works from start to finish and how thorough the HGT team are, I’m sure there are many other partnerships in the pipeline.”
Her Game Too also aim to create regular content that showcases women involved with football in any way from players through to supporters. They aim to do this by creating strong relationships with clubs and their communities.
A way in which they’ve done this at Stourbridge is by including posters and announcements at matches, on social media or in the clubhouse.
This in HGT’s eyes helps build a welcoming environment for young girls and women at these football clubs as well as continuing their campaign against sexism in football and online abuse.
Clark added: “I don’t feel we have any issues of sexism here at Stourbridge, but we approached this project with a different angle. We didn’t want to be complacent and we would urge other clubs to look at it from this point of view too.
“The important thing for clubs to remember though, it’s not just a hashtag or an announcement that can be forgotten about. It’s all about changing attitudes and fighting for equality for women in the long run. If and when an issue arises we and other clubs have to be aware and tackle them head on.
“I do hope it shows our club in a positive way, as this partnership is really important to all of us here at Stourbridge. But on the whole, I just hope it helps make football a more welcoming environment for women, even though the game still has a long way to go in terms of being fully equal for all.”
For anymore information on Her Game Too click here or follow them on twitter: @HerGameToo
