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This past Wednesday, Bay Collective announced the hiring of Van Ginhoven, England's managerial lead working with head coach Sarina Wiegman, as their director of global women’s football operations. This freshly established collective club ownership initiative, which includes San Francisco’s Bay FC as the initial addition among its holdings, has a history in bringing in talent from the Football Association.

The appointment in recent months of Cossington, the well-respected ex-technical director for the FA, to the CEO role was a clear statement by the collective. Cossington is deeply familiar with women’s football comprehensively and now has gathered a leadership team with profound insight of the history of women's football and packed with experience.

Van Ginhoven becomes the third key figure of Wiegman's coaching team to depart recently, with Cossington departing prior to the Euros and deputy manager, Veurink, stepping down to become head coach of the Dutch national team, but Van Ginhoven's choice came sooner.

Leaving has been a jarring experience, but “I’d taken my decision to exit the national setup quite a long time ago”, she says. “My agreement covering four years, exactly like Arjan and Sarina did. When they renewed, I had already said I wasn't sure about renewing myself. I was already used to the notion that following the tournament my time with England would end.”

The Euros became an emotional event because of this. “It's sharp in my memory, speaking with the head coach in which I informed her about my decision and after which we agreed: ‘There’s just one dream, what a triumph it would represent if we were to win the European Championship?’ Generally, it's rare that hopes materialize often however, absolutely incredibly, ours came true.”

Wearing a Netherlands-colored shirt, Van Ginhoven experiences split allegiances post her tenure with the English team, where she was part of claiming two Euros in a row and worked within the manager's team for the Netherlands’ triumph in the 2017 European Championship.

“The English side retains a dear spot in my heart. Therefore, it’s going to be tough, notably since that the players are due to arrive for national team duty soon,” she notes. “In matches between England and the Netherlands, which side do I back? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, but tomorrow it’s white.”

You can change direction and move quickly in a speedboat. In a small team like this, that’s easily done.

Bay FC was not in the plans when the strategic expert was deciding that it was time for a change, however everything aligned opportunely. Cossington initiated the recruitment and common principles proved essential.

“Essentially upon meeting we got together we experienced an instant connection,” says she. “There was immediate understanding. We've discussed extensively about different things concerning growing the sport and our shared vision for the right approach.”

Cossington and Van Ginhoven are not alone to uproot themselves from prominent roles in the European game for a fresh start across the Atlantic. Atlético Madrid’s women’s technical director, González, has been unveiled as the organization's new global sporting director.

“I was very attracted to that strong belief of the power within the female sport,” she says. “I have known Kay Cossington for a long time; back when I was with Fifa, she served as England's technical director, and decisions like this come naturally when you are aware you will have around you colleagues who drive you.”

The profound understanding within their group sets them apart, notes Van Ginhoven, with Bay Collective among a number fresh club ownership ventures to launch in recent years. “That’s one of our unique selling points. Various methods are valid, but we are firm in our belief in ensuring deep football understanding,” she says. “Each of us have traveled a path in women’s football, throughout our careers.”

As their website states, the mission of this group is to champion and pioneer a forward-thinking and durable system of women’s football clubs, based on what works addressing the different demands of women. Succeeding in this, with everyone on the same page, without having to justify actions for why you would take certain actions, is hugely liberating.

“I liken it to transitioning from a tanker to a speedboat,” says Van Ginhoven. “You are essentially navigating through waters that there are no roadmaps for – that’s a Dutch saying, not sure how it comes across – and it's necessary to trust your personal insight and skills to choose wisely. Adjusting course and speeding up is possible in a speedboat. In a lean group like this, that is simple to achieve.”

She continues: “Here, we have a completely white sheet of paper to work from. For me, our work involves shaping the sport on a wider scale and that white paper enables you to pursue any direction you choose, adhering to football's guidelines. That’s the beauty of our collective project.”

The ambition is high, the management are saying the things the football community want to hear and it will be fascinating to observe the evolution of Bay Collective, Bay FC and other teams that may join.

To get a sense of future plans, which elements are crucial of a high-performance environment? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve