Top stars want Premier League to bring in quota of at least one BAME coach at EVERY club amid pressure to increase diversity – and talks have been held with the FA, who introduced same rule with England teams
- Premier League captains back a proposal to increase quota of BAME coaches
- The FA uses a policy to assign at least one BAME coach to each England team
- Informal talks about a similar plan have been held between the League and FA
- Premier League clubs are under pressure about a lack of diversity in coaching
Premier League players want their clubs to follow the FA’s lead by committing to having at least one Black, Asian or ethnic minority (BAME) coach on their first-team staff.
Sportsmail has learned that informal talks have been held between the FA and the Premier League over the proposal, which has the backing of many influential players.
The FA introduced a policy of assigning one BAME coach to each England team as part of a new equality action plan two years ago. That led to former Charlton manager Chris Powell working with Gareth Southgate’s senior squad and experience of international coaching being given to the likes of Sol Campbell.
Premier League stars are keen on a quota of at least one BAME coach at each team, a policy used by the FA that led to Chris Powell, pictured, working with the England squad
It also allowed ex-Arsenal defender Sol Campbell to gain international coaching experience
Premier League clubs are now under pressure to follow this example after the lack of representation of minority groups in coaching positions was highlighted in light of conversations triggered by the Black Lives Matter movement.
The disparity in the BAME presence between the playing and coaching ranks is stark.
More than 30 per cent of Premier League players are from a BAME background, yet the figure for coaches is around five per cent.
Premier League captains were influential in persuading clubs to replace names on shirts with ‘Black Lives Matter’ for the first round of fixtures after the resumption, having addressed the issue on a conference call last week.
The same group are now behind calls for a coaching quota. However, as it is a more complex issue which would affect clubs’ staffing levels and budgets, it will take longer to address and any change is not thought to be imminent.
The FA’s 2018 equality action plan involved the governing body introducing the Rooney Rule in their recruitment process, under which they committed to interviewing at least one BAME candidate for all England coaching roles.
The Football League followed the FA’s example the following year, but the Premier League have so far resisted the change and are not planning to alter their approach.