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This past Wednesday, the Bay Collective group revealed the hiring of Anja van Ginhoven, England's managerial lead under head coach Sarina Wiegman, to serve as their director of global women’s football operations. The freshly established multi-club ownership body, with San Francisco’s Bay FC as its first club in its portfolio, has previously engaged in hiring individuals from the English FA.

The hiring this year of Cossington, the prominent former FA technical director, as the chief executive acted as a clear statement from the collective. Cossington knows the women's game thoroughly and currently has put together a management group with profound insight of the history of women's football and packed with experience.

Van Ginhoven is the third central staffer of Wiegman's coaching team to depart in the current year, following Cossington exiting before the European Championships and deputy manager, Veurink, stepping down to become head coach of the Netherlands, but Van Ginhoven's choice was made earlier.

Stepping away has been a surprising shift, but “I had decided to depart the Football Association quite a long time ago”, she explains. “I had a contract covering four years, just as the assistant and head coach had. As they re-signed, I previously indicated I didn’t know whether I would. I had grown accustomed to the notion that following the tournament I wouldn’t be part of England any more.”

The tournament became a deeply felt competition due to that. “I recall distinctly, speaking with Sarina in which I informed her about my decision and then we said: ‘We share a single dream, how incredible it would be to clinch the European title?’ Generally, dreams don't aspirations are realized frequently however, against the odds, ours came true.”

Wearing a Netherlands-colored shirt, Van Ginhoven has divided loyalties following her stint working in England, where she helped achieve claiming two Euros in a row and was a part of Wiegman’s staff when the Netherlands won in the 2017 European Championship.

“England retains an emotional connection for me. Therefore, it will be difficult, especially with the knowledge that the squad are due to arrive for the upcoming fixtures shortly,” she says. “When England plays the Netherlands, which side do I back? I’m wearing orange at the moment, though tomorrow English white.”

A speedboat allows for rapid direction changes. In a lean group like this one, that’s easily done.

The American side was not in the plans when the organisational wizard was deciding it was time to move on, but the opportunity arose perfectly. The chief executive started to bring people in and their shared values proved essential.

“Essentially upon meeting we met we had that click moment,” says Van Ginhoven. “We were instantly aligned. Our conversations have been thorough about different things around how you grow the game and the methods we believe are correct.”

The two leaders are not the only figures to make a move from prominent roles within European football for a fresh start in the United States. Atlético Madrid’s female football technical lead, González, has been introduced as Bay Collective’s new global sporting director.

“I was highly interested by the firm conviction of the power within the female sport,” González says. “I'm familiar with Cossington for a long time; back when I was with Fifa, she was the technical director of England, and decisions like this come naturally knowing you'll be working alongside colleagues who drive you.”

The extensive expertise within their group makes them unique, says she, with Bay Collective among a number recent multi-team projects that have started in recent years. “This is a key differentiator for us. Various methods are valid, but we are firm in our belief in having that football knowledge on board,” she adds. “Each of us have been on a journey in female football, for most of our lives.”

As their website states, the mission for the collective is to advocate and innovate a forward-thinking and durable system within female football clubs, built on proven methods addressing the different demands of female athletes. Succeeding in this, with collective agreement, eliminating the need for persuasion for why you would take certain actions, is incredibly freeing.

“I equate it to going from a tanker to a speedboat,” remarks Van Ginhoven. “You're journeying in uncharted waters – a common Dutch expression, not sure how it comes across – and you just need to rely on your own knowledge and expertise to choose wisely. You can pivot and accelerate rapidly in a speedboat. In a lean group like this, it's straightforward to accomplish.”

She notes: “With this opportunity, we begin with a clean canvas to start with. In my view, our work involves shaping the sport on a wider scale and that blank slate permits you to undertake any direction you choose, adhering to football's guidelines. That’s the beauty of our collective project.”

The aspirations are significant, the management are voicing opinions players and fans are eager to hear and it will be interesting to follow the development of Bay Collective, Bay FC and future additions to the group.

For a flavour of what is to come, what factors are essential in a high-performance setting? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve