England’s Lionesses lifted the trophy at the Women’s Euros 2022 and there is so much to celebrate. As well as this, the Football Association (the FA) has revealed that it pays women the same appearance money as men when they play for England. Female professional football players are also importantly earning enough money to not have to have a second job in order to pay the bills. But what did some of the most famous Lionesses do before they became professional? Well, at Adzuna, we have explored the answers to that exact question, and have even researched the current jobs of their partners.
Bethany England
With such a patriotic surname, it is only right that Bethany England has earned her place in the England Lionesses team. It hasn’t always been plain sailing for the forward player, however. From age 17 to just before her 20th birthday, Bethany worked in Wellington Street chippy in Barnsley. Her dedication to football is shown by her starting her shift at the chippy at 10 pm, and finishing at 5 am-6 am. She then had just a few hours of sleep before going to her football games. Oh, and at the same time, she was at college!
Bethany has also worked in other jobs, such as a bakery, a factory, M&S, and an Indian restaurant. Her CV is pretty jam-packed! Unfortunately, she had no choice but to work so much, as at the start of her career at Doncaster Belles, she was paid just £150 a month. This didn’t cover her fuel driving back and forth up to five times a week. Fortunately, England didn’t let any of these challenges stop her and she is now one of the nation’s most successful female players.
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Jill Scott
Prior to becoming a successful footballer, Jill Scott gained plenty of qualifications. Scott completed a BTEC National Diploma in Sport and Exercise Science, as well as a foundation degree in sports and exercise development. She was also enrolled to study sport at Loughborough University. However, football isn’t her only job now. She actually owns a coffee shop in Manchester called Boxx2Boxx coffee. Jill clearly has a talent for multitasking to own a company and be a professional footballer!
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Beth Mead
Arsenal and England player Beth Mead has also worked hard to develop her qualifications. Beth attended Teesside University whilst playing for Sunderland to achieve a degree in Sports Development. But did she do any other jobs before becoming a professional footballer? Beth actually used to work in a village pub the night before she played a game solely so that she could earn some money to get her there.
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Lucy Bronze
Perhaps the most famous Lioness player right now is Lucy Bronze. Did you know that when she joined Everton, it wasn’t her only commitment? She was actually studying at the time. If this wasn’t enough, she was also working part-time in a pizza shop. Her role ranged from cutting the pizzas, to arranging the toppings and loves joking about it now with younger players.
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Millie Bright
Defender Millie Bright has been playing for England for 11 years and is currently playing for Chelsea. However, she hasn’t always been able to focus solely on football. Whilst at Doncaster Belles towards the start of her career, she had to juggle several commitments. She was a fitness instructor at a leisure centre and a horse groom all whilst playing football on top of it. Pretty impressive, isn’t it!
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Leah Williamson
Not only does Leah Williamson play for Arsenal and captain England, but she is also studying. Although Williamson is a full-time footballer, she is also studying part time to become a qualified accountant. This isn’t something which she did before fame, but she has claimed that it is in preparation for her football retirement or an insurance policy in case of injury.
Want to follow in Leah Williamson’s footsteps? Check out accountant vacancies here
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But, what about the WAGs (wives and girlfriends) and HABs (husbands and boyfriends) of the Lionesses? Ever wondered what they do for a living?
Shelley Unitt
Shelley Unitt is the fiancée and long-time partner of Jill Scott, but what does she do for a living? Unitt is actually the co-owner of Boxx2Boxx Coffee alongside Jill. Their website states that “The most important things in life have always been family, football and coffee!” which definitely sums up their business ventures!
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Jack O’Connell
Jack O’Connell is the childhood sweetheart of Alex Greenwood. He is a name which you might also recognise as he is also a professional footballer. O’Connell plays for Sheffield United and has previously played for Brentford and Blackburn Rovers.
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Millie Turner
Rachel Daly is currently in a relationship with Millie Turner. But did you know that Millie is also a professional football player? She is very talented, playing for Manchester United currently, with her career including Everton and Bristol City.
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Olly Ashall-Bott
Georgia Stanway has been in a relationship with Olly Ashall-Bott since 2018. However, she is not the only sporty one in the relationship. Olly is a professional rugby player, who currently plays for Toulouse Olympique.
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Levi Crew
Millie Bright is in a long-term relationship with Levi Crew, but what does he do for a living? Levi is actually self-employed and is a performance-enhancing coach. Pretty cool, right?
If you want to become a coach, check out vacancies here
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The future of women’s football
It is great that women are finally being paid the same amount as their male counterparts for competing. This also means that the stories of female players having to juggle football with other jobs are becoming less and less common.
However, the inequality in football is far from over. Currently, the pay-packets for winning tournaments are very different for men and women. To compare, if England’s women had won the World Cup in 2019, they would have received £50,000 each in FA bonuses. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Sure, it is a lot of money but the men can expect a lot more than that. If the men had won the World Cup in 2018, they would have received a huge £217,000 each.
Women are also still being underpaid in terms of general salaries in football. Those who play in the Women’s Super League can earn up to £200,000 annually, with salaries starting at just £20,000. By comparison, the average Premier League salary for men is more than £3 million. This isn’t the highest salary earned by male players in the Premier League by any means. Manchester City player Kevin De Bruyne, for example, earns £385,000 per week. This is £185,000 more each week than the highest annual salary for women. This suggests that the inequality in football is far from over.
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Remember to keep cheering on the Lionesses now the tournament is over. Although women are much closer to becoming equal to their male counterparts, there is still a long way to go. By supporting the team, they may get one step closer to the funding that they need.
Read more: The 10 most sexist cities with the biggest gender pay gaps
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