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This past Wednesday, this new ownership entity revealed the recruitment of Van Ginhoven, England's managerial lead under head coach Sarina Wiegman, taking on the role of global women's football operations director. The freshly established multi-team ownership group, with San Francisco’s Bay FC as the inaugural team within its group, has prior experience in bringing in talent from the national football governing body.

The hiring earlier this year of Kay Cossington, the prominent ex-technical director for the FA, to the CEO role served as a demonstration of ambition by the collective. She is deeply familiar with the women's game inside out and now has put together a management group that possesses extensive knowledge of the evolution of the women's game and filled with experience.

Van Ginhoven becomes the third central staffer of Wiegman's coaching team to exit in the current year, with Cossington exiting before the European Championships and assistant coach, Arjan Veurink, stepping down to assume the position of head coach of Holland, however her decision came sooner.

Moving on was a surprising shift, but “My choice was made to leave the FA some time back”, Van Ginhoven explains. “I had a contract covering four years, just as Veurink and Wiegman did. Upon their extension, I previously indicated I didn’t know if I would do the same. I had accepted the notion that following the tournament I would no longer be involved with the national team.”

The European Championship became a deeply felt event because of this. “It's sharp in my memory, discussing with the head coach in which I informed her about my decision and after which we agreed: ‘We share a single dream, what a triumph it would represent that we win the Euros?’ In reality, it's rare that dreams come true frequently but, against the odds, ours came true.”

Sitting in an orange T-shirt, she has divided loyalties after her time working in England, where she helped achieve claiming two Euros in a row and worked within Wiegman’s staff when the Netherlands won in the 2017 European Championship.

“The English side retains a dear spot in my heart. So, it will be challenging, particularly now knowing that the team are scheduled to come for the upcoming fixtures in the near future,” she notes. “In matches between England and the Netherlands, which side do I back? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, but tomorrow I'll be in white.”

You can change direction and move quickly in a speedboat. In a small team like this, it's effortless to accomplish.

The American side was not in the plans when the strategic expert was deciding that it was time for a change, however the opportunity arose at the right time. The chief executive initiated the recruitment and their shared values were crucial.

“Virtually from the start we got together we experienced an instant connection,” states she. “We were instantly aligned. We've discussed extensively on various topics concerning growing the sport and our shared vision for the right approach.”

These executives are not the only figures to make a move from well-known positions within European football for a blank sheet of paper in the US. Atlético Madrid’s female football technical lead, González, has been introduced as Bay Collective’s worldwide sports director.

“I was very attracted to that strong belief in the potential of women's football,” González comments. “I've been acquainted with Kay Cossington for a long time; 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 makes them unique, says Van Ginhoven, with Bay Collective one of several fresh club ownership ventures to launch over the past few 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 been on a journey in female football, probably for the best part of our lives.”

As outlined on their site, the mission of Bay Collective is to champion and pioneer a forward-thinking and durable system for women's football clubs, based on what works to meet the varied requirements of women in sport. Succeeding in this, with collective agreement, without having to justify actions regarding certain decisions, is incredibly freeing.

“I compare it with moving from a large ship to a fast boat,” states Van Ginhoven. “You're journeying through waters that there are no roadmaps for – a common Dutch expression, I don’t know if it translates – and you must depend on your own knowledge and expertise to make the right decision. Adjusting course and speeding up is possible with a speedboat. In a small team like this, it's straightforward to accomplish.”

González adds: “In this role, we have a completely white sheet of paper to work from. Personally, what we do focuses on impacting football more extensively and that blank slate allows you to do anything you desire, within the rules of the game. That is the advantage of our joint endeavor.”

Their goals are lofty, those in leading roles are expressing sentiments athletes and supporters want to hear and it will be interesting to follow the development of the collective, the club and other teams that may join.

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