AN MP has pledged to improve opportunities for women in the football industry.

Mark Tami, MP for Alyn and Deeside has shown his support for the #WhatIf campaign from Women in Football and sponsor Betfair.

What If is an innovative campaign, driven largely by social channels which is designed to encourage parliamentarians, businesses, members of the public and celebrities to take action to improve the landscape for every woman in football. It challenges them to identify one way that they can contribute to an improvement for women and girls within the football industry.

Mark Tami MP said: "Although the women’s game has arguably never been stronger, we are still a long way off where it should be. Football is very much still a sport a sport dominated by men and we should be doing more to encourage and create paths for women to get into the sport.

"A suggestion I very much agree with is making football a sports choice for every schoolgirl. This is just one way the #Whatif campaign is trying to make football more accessible for women and I commend Women in Football for their campaign."

The Leader:

At a recent parliamentary reception at the start of the month, Mark Tami joined the hundreds of people who have taken part by asking ‘What if football was available as a sports choice for every schoolgirl?’.

Jane Purdon, CEO of Women in Football said: "It’s truly heartening to learn that Mark Tami has made a personal pledge to champion women working in and around the football industry, and the women’s game.

"I would encourage anyone who has been inspired by this campaign to get involved and make their own pledge, however big or small, by using the hashtag #WhatIf on Twitter."

Naomi Totten, of Betfair, added: "We are delighted to be a headline sponsor of the #WhatIf campaign, it’s been incredible to see so many people, including Mark Tami, pledging their own support and committing to driving the development of women’s football and conditions for women within the industry forward.

"In addition to sponsoring the campaign, Betfair also pledged to ring-fence 50 per cent of our Cash4Clubs grassroots sports grants to women’s teams and are pleased to say that we have already fulfilled this pledge.

"In 2017 Betfair also committed to increasing the number of women in the UK with a professional football coaching licence in an attempt to address gender inequality in the English coaching pyramid. As it stands, at the very top, there are just 5 women on a UEFA pro license in the UK compared with nearly 300 men. There is still lots to be done and we hope that the What If pledges will continue to push the agenda forward."