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Midweek, this new ownership entity revealed the recruitment of Anja van Ginhoven, England's general manager under head coach Sarina Wiegman, as their director of global women’s football operations. This new multi-team ownership group, featuring San Francisco’s Bay FC as its inaugural team among its holdings, has previously engaged in bringing in talent from the national football governing body.

The appointment in recent months of Cossington, the well-respected former FA technical director, as the chief executive acted as a demonstration of ambition by this organization. She knows the women's game thoroughly and currently she has assembled an executive team with a deep understanding of the evolution of the women's game and packed with professional background.

She is the third central staffer of Wiegman's coaching team to exit in the current year, following the chief executive departing before Euro 2025 and deputy manager, Arjan Veurink, leaving to take up the role of manager of Holland, but her decision arrived more quickly.

Moving on has been a shock to the system, but “I’d taken my decision to depart the Football Association quite a long time ago”, she explains. “The terms covering four years, just as the assistant and head coach did. When they renewed, I had already said I was uncertain if I would do the same. I had accepted the thought that after the European Championship I would no longer be involved with the national team.”

The European Championship was a deeply felt competition because of this. “I remember very clearly, vividly, speaking with Sarina where I basically told her about my decision and then we said: ‘Our ultimate aspiration, what a triumph it would represent to clinch the European title?’ In life, it’s not like aspirations are realized often but, absolutely incredibly, ours came true.”

Wearing a Netherlands-colored shirt, Van Ginhoven has divided loyalties after her time with the English team, where she was part of claiming two Euros in a row and worked within the manager's team during the Dutch victory in the 2017 European Championship.

“The English side retains a special place in my heart. So, it will be challenging, particularly now knowing that the squad are scheduled to come for national team duty in the near future,” she notes. “When England plays the Netherlands, where do my loyalties lie? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, though tomorrow English white.”

A speedboat allows for rapid direction changes. With a compact team such as ours, that is simple to achieve.

The club was not initially considered as the management specialist concluded that a new chapter was needed, however the pieces fell into place at the right time. The chief executive began assembling the team and common principles proved essential.

“Almost from the very first moment we connected we felt immediate synergy,” remarks Van Ginhoven. “You’re immediately on the same level. Our conversations have been thorough regarding multiple aspects around how you grow the game and what we think is the right way.”

The two leaders are among several to relocate from high-profile jobs in Europe's football scene for a fresh start across the Atlantic. The Spanish club's women’s technical director, González, has been introduced as Bay Collective’s new global sporting director.

“I was highly interested by the firm conviction in the potential of the women’s game,” González comments. “I'm familiar with Cossington for an extended period; during my tenure at Fifa, she was the technical director of England, and it’s easy to make these decisions when you know you are going to be surrounded by people who really inspire you.”

The depth of knowledge among their staff sets them apart, explains she, with Bay Collective one of several fresh club ownership ventures to launch over the past few years. “This is a key differentiator for us. It’s OK that people do things in different ways, but we are firm in our belief in ensuring deep football understanding,” she states. “All three of us have traveled a path in women’s football, probably for the best part of our lives.”

As outlined on their site, the ambition for the collective is to support and lead an advanced and lasting environment for women's football clubs, built on proven methods to meet the varied requirements of female athletes. Doing that, with everyone on the same page, eliminating the need for persuasion for why you would take certain actions, is hugely liberating.

“I equate it to moving from a large ship to a fast boat,” says she. “You are essentially navigating through waters that there are no roadmaps for – that’s a Dutch saying, I don’t know if it translates – and you must depend on your individual understanding and experience to make the right decision. You can pivot and accelerate rapidly in a speedboat. In a small team like this, that is simple to achieve.”

González continues: “In this role, we begin with a clean canvas to start with. For me, our work is about influencing the game on a wider scale and that clean start enables you to pursue any direction you choose, within the rules of the game. That’s the beauty of our collective project.”

Their goals are lofty, those in leading roles are saying the things athletes and supporters hope to hear and it will be interesting to monitor the progress of Bay Collective, the team and any clubs added to the portfolio.

For a flavour of what is to come, 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