Drink, Think & Link: Inequality in Sport - Women's Football ⚽

Welcome to the next in our Drink, Think & Link series - bringing together thoughtful conversation, fresh perspectives, and genuine connection (with a drink in hand).

❓What’s it about?

Women's football is having a moment. The crowds are up, the coverage is growing, the Lionesses are household names. But look beyond the professional spotlight, and a more complicated picture emerges - one of historical exclusion, unequal investment, barriers to grassroots participation, and representation that still has a long way to go.

At this month's Drink, Think & Link, we're using women's football as a lens to explore wider questions of access, inclusion, and what a more equitable game could look like.

🎤⚽Our speakers:

• Ayisha Gulati is Head of Women's Football at Hayters TV and an On Purpose Fellow. She works at the intersection of sport and media, and has a sharp eye for where the professional game has come from, where it is and where it's going to.

• Bessie Pike is a Vibe Protector at Gals FC, a nationwide football club putting community over competition and changing the way women and non-binary people participate in team sport. Alongside protecting the vibes, she's a consumer researcher who has worked with brands including Nike, Adidas and This Girl Can. She also leads Gals on the Ground, Gals FC's insight series, with recent research exploring women and non-binary people's experiences of the Men's World Cup.

• Teni Charles is a dual-career athlete playing semi-pro football for Stevenage WFC alongside international duty for Saint Vincent & the Grenadines. Beyond the pitch, she founded ThisConnect Sports, curating events at the intersection of culture and sport for ethnically diverse fans. Across every role, she is driven to reshape perceptions around diversity and equality in sport.

Together we’ll explore how the game has changed, access, inclusion, representation, and what it would take to make the game more inclusive and equitable.

Bring your questions. No offside rule on hot takes.

And as a one-off, we're opening this session beyond the On Purpose community, so whether you're an Associate, Fellow, coach, mentor, host organisation, friend, colleague, or simply interested in the topic, we'd love for you to join us.

🕰️Timings

• Doors from 6:30pm

• Discussion: 7:00pm

• Q&A: 7:45pm

🎟️Tickets

Tickets are free, but please register through this platform so we can plan numbers (tap the “Get your tickets” button.

About On Purpose

On Purpose is tackling the greatest challenge of our time: transforming our economy from profit to purpose. Our leadership programme develops people who will play their part in this transformation. Through the programme, we support organisations by embedding experienced, purpose-driven talent to work on the challenges that matter most.