Interview With Emma Hayes: Arsenal Ladies Assistant Coach Finally Shares Her Untold Soccer Story

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Camden Town, London, England, is a melting pot full of many different cultures, unique shops, and a dynamic social scene.

Many shops in London have exactly the same fashions and exactly the same people walking around. Camden Town, however, is much different. During the day, Camden is a culmination of a thousand different cultures enjoying the goth/punk/alternative atmosphere, and shopping the sprawling street markets, which specialize in urban fashion, lifestyle, books, food, junk/antiques and bizarre goods. Basically anything goes here – from from goth to rasta, old school punk to retro 60’s mod.

At night, Camden transforms into a party place. Bars like the Underworld or the Dublin Castle offer the latest in alternative live bands. The Jazz Cafe keeps the best in live jazz, blues, fusion, hip hop and R&B. You can also stroll into one of the many pubs just to chill out and maybe meet a few famous people along the way. The World’s End pub opened its doors in 1778 and is still a neighborhood hot spot.

Soccer Coach Emma Hayes is as unique as the environment she grew up in. A thrill-seeker from Camden Town, her gritty ambition surpasses that of the most upper-crust kid in Regents Park. In 2000, after much denial about her inability to play soccer due to a chronic ankle injury (and six years pursuing an unsuccessful career in the secret service), Emma accepted her true calling to become a soccer coach. She purchased a one-way trans-Atlantic flight to New York City, and arrived with merely a thousand dollars, a backpack and a dream. Today’s she’s recognized as a top clinician and one of the most decorated coaches in the world.

I was fortunate to catch up with Emma Hayes over the telephone on May 9, 2008, and ask her about her childhood, what it was like to grow up in Camden, and how these experiences have influenced her coaching career.

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Amanda: You’re a city girl from London, but more specifically, Camden Town. What was it like growing up there?
Emma: Camden Town is a diverse and multicultural place. It’s the home of punk rockers, and it’s very grungy. Camden wasn’t all countryside and farmyards like many suburban kids grow up with; it was a concrete jungle. As kids, we were exposed to an awful lot.

The photo above is of Camden Street in London.

Amanda: What can you tell me about playing soccer in the streets of Camden?
Emma: We had true street soccer, 20-a-side, no bibs, and we used bags to make goals. The teams were made up of kids of nationalities from all over the world. I was brought up in a flat, as were most of the neighborhood kids, so we used to play different flats against one another. It was territorial and the rivalry was massive. Football had nothing to do with race or gender, it was one flat versus the other. I’d liken it to teams of United Nations, and it was brilliant! Afterward, we’d all hang out at Regent’s Park – a beautiful place, surrounded by huge Regency era architecture. The great thing is that you would have extremes right next door – Regents Park was the hub that connected everyone, rich and poor.

Amanda: Were there many girls that played in the streets with you?
Emma: No, at football it was mostly boys. But my sister and I would play, and because we were from the same block of flats, we were always on the same team. She’d always pass to me, and I’d try to score.

Amanda: What influence has your family had on your sporting career?
Emma: I have two sisters, and we’re a sporty family. Living in London, we were encouraged to get involved in sports from an early age. In school, I played tennis. I played a lot of rounders, and I even played cricket for a while. My mum would take us to sports clubs as a kid. My dad was also very involved.

Left, the Arsenal Tube Station. Right, Arsenal’s Highbury Stadium.

Amanda: Tell me about when you first went to Arsenal.
Emma: My sister, Becky, and I took the initiative and went to Arsenal when we were 10, so I started playing at the club pretty much when it started. We would go along on a Friday and pay our 50 pence to get a training session. The team was made up of talented kids from the local area. These were all girls from similar backgrounds, so it was a great opportunity to meet like-minded people.

At Arsenal, there has always been an emphasis on technique, and we were trained at the JVC center at Highbury. At first, my dad coached the team, so if that wasn’t a clear indication that coaching was in my blood I don’t know what was.

Amanda: You were at Arsenal for 7 years. Can you tell me what girls’ football was like in England during that time?
Emma: At that time, there were perhaps 80 teams registered around the country. There certainly weren’t a lot of girls playing, so it was underdeveloped and we basically had to take what we could get. The men’s program would provide our kits, but otherwise we didn’t get a lot of support.

Amanda: You left Arsenal to play a year a Millwall before attending Liverpool-Hope University. Did you feel your football career was over at this point, or did you intend to continue playing?
Emma: Millwall, at that time, was probably the 2nd best club in England, and they were great to play for. I should tell you that I’ve had a problem with my right ankle since I was 12. Basically, it doesn’t absorb shock. We couldn’t figure out what had happened or why I always felt such severe pain. I had scans and visited the doctor, but it was incredibly painful, so yes, at that point I decided I didn’t want to play seriously any longer.

Amanda: Tell me about your studies at university.
Emma: I studied European Studies, Spanish and Sociology. It was the first chance I had to focus on something other than soccer and I really enjoyed it. I spent time in Spain and had been learning Spanish since I was 13, so I was keen on developing a better understanding of the language. I’ve always had a strong interest in European politics, and I love Sociology more than anything else because I enjoy understanding how things work.

I did play for my university team while I was at Liverpool-Hope, but it wasn’t very serious. In truth, I was planning to become a spy. I wanted to be James Bond and work for MI5, the Secret Service. I was rebelling against football as well. I hated being injured and it took me a lot of years to accept that I couldn’t play at the level I wanted. I didn’t deal with it in college, I buried it, but I was adamant I didn’t want to play in pain.

“Call me Bond, Emma Bond.”

After graduation, I moved to Manchester to pursue a Master’s Degree in Intelligence and International Affairs at Salford University. And, well, if I tell you any more about that, I may have to kill you.

Amanda: At what point did you decide you wanted to pursue coaching?
Emma: I returned to London to spend a year as a Sport Development Officer, and decided to take my UEFA B Coaching License. Being a woman in the course was a miserable experience, but however difficult that time was, it once again fired up my love for soccer. I decided this: What I should be doing is not playing football or developing sport, but becoming the best football coach in the world.

Before this, I had spent a long time fighting that inclination, while knowing in my heart that coaching was my calling. I desperately wanted to be a soccer player, and I couldn’t. It took me a long, long time to accept that. But in the end, I think I am going to be a better coach than I could have ever been as a player. It just feels right.

In the summer of 2000, I gathered a backpack full of clothes and $1000, and I took a job working for MLS Camps on Long Island. The rest, as they say, is history.

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Emma received MAAC Coach of the Year Honors in 2005 following the most successful women’s soccer season in Iona College history.

Among her growing list of successes, Emma was awarded the 2002 W-League National Coach of the Year after a highly successful campaign as the Head Coach of the Long Island Lady Riders. Most recently, as the Assistant Coach at Arsenal, Emma helped guide her team to the 07 UEFA Women’s Cup, 07-08 FA Women’s Premier League, 07-08 FA Women’s Cup, 07 FA Women’s Premier League Cup, and the 07-08 London County FA Women’s Cup.

Emma holds a National Soccer Coaches’ Association of America Premiere Diploma and has been a Featured Clinician at the NSCAA National Convention for three consecutive years. She routinely travels back to the states to give presentations including Tony DiCicco’s Soccer Champions Coaches’ Clinic and Coerver Coaching Clinics.

Tagged as: arsenal, camden, Emma Hayes, street soccer