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Midweek, Bay Collective announced the hiring of Anja van Ginhoven, the English national team's managerial lead under Sarina Wiegman, to serve as their overseer of worldwide women's football activities. This freshly established collective club ownership initiative, which includes the San Francisco-based Bay FC as its first club within its group, has a history in hiring individuals from the national football governing body.

The selection earlier this year of Kay Cossington, the influential former FA technical director, to the CEO role acted as a clear statement from Bay Collective. She understands the women's game comprehensively and now has gathered an executive team that possesses extensive knowledge of the history of women's football and filled with practical experience.

She marks the third key figure of Wiegman’s setup to exit this year, with Cossington exiting prior to the European Championships and assistant coach, Veurink, stepping down to take up the role of head coach of the Netherlands, but Van Ginhoven's choice was made earlier.

Stepping away has been a shock to the system, but “I’d taken my decision to leave the FA some time back”, she says. “My agreement lasting four years, similar to the assistant and head coach did. As they re-signed, I had expressed I wasn't sure if I would do the same. I had accepted the whole idea that after the European Championship I would no longer be involved with the national team.”

The tournament turned into an emotional event due to that. “It's sharp in my memory, having a conversation with the head coach when I disclosed about my decision and we then remarked: ‘We share a single dream, how incredible it would be that we win the Euros?’ In reality, dreams don't hopes materialize every day however, against the odds, ours came true.”

Sitting in an orange T-shirt, Van Ginhoven holds dual affections following her stint in England, during which she contributed to securing consecutive European championships and was a part of the manager's team when the Netherlands won the 2017 Euros.

“England will always hold a dear spot in my heart. So, it will be challenging, especially with the knowledge that the squad will be arriving for the international camp in the near future,” she says. “In matches between England and the Netherlands, who do I support? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, though tomorrow English white.”

You can change direction and move quickly in a speedboat. With a compact team such as ours, that is simple to achieve.

The American side was not in the plans when the organisational wizard concluded that a new chapter was needed, but the pieces fell into place opportunely. The chief executive initiated the recruitment and their shared values were crucial.

“Virtually from the start we met we experienced an instant connection,” says Van Ginhoven. “We were instantly aligned. We have spoken at length regarding multiple aspects concerning growing the sport and what we think is the right way.”

The two leaders are not alone to relocate from prominent roles in Europe's football scene for a fresh start in the US. The Spanish club's female football technical lead, Patricia González, has been announced as the organization's global sporting director.

“I felt strongly drawn to that strong belief in the potential of the women’s game,” González says. “I've been acquainted with Kay Cossington for an extended period; during my tenure at Fifa, she held the technical director role for England, and it’s easy to make these decisions knowing you'll be working alongside individuals who motivate you.”

The depth of knowledge within their group distinguishes them, notes she, as Bay Collective part of a group recent multi-team projects that have started lately. “It's a standout feature of our approach. It’s OK that people do things in different ways, but we definitely believe in incorporating football expertise,” she states. “The entire leadership have progressed in female football, for most of our lives.”

As their website states, the mission for the collective is to champion and pioneer a progressive and sustainable ecosystem of women’s football clubs, based on what works for the diverse needs of female athletes. Achieving this, with unified understanding, eliminating the need for persuasion for why you would take certain actions, is incredibly freeing.

“I liken it to transitioning from a tanker to a speedboat,” remarks Van Ginhoven. “You are essentially navigating through waters that there are no roadmaps for – that’s a Dutch saying, I'm unsure if it translates well – and you must depend on your own knowledge and expertise to choose wisely. You can pivot and accelerate rapidly using a speedboat. In a small team like this, it's straightforward to accomplish.”

She continues: “Here, we have a completely white sheet of paper to work from. For me, our mission is about influencing the game more extensively and that blank slate permits you to undertake any direction you choose, adhering to football's guidelines. That is the advantage of our collective project.”

The ambition is high, the executives are voicing opinions athletes and supporters hope to hear and it will be fascinating to monitor the progress of Bay Collective, the club and future additions to the group.

For a flavour of what is to come, what are the key aspects of a high-performance environment? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve