NFL’s first team with two female presidents at the helm | Real Time Headlines

When the Carolina Panthers take on the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, it will mark a historic first for the National Football League.

The match was the first time the two female presidents had gone head-to-head in professional football. The two executives represent a small but growing group of women in NFL front offices and are the only two female presidents among the league’s 32 teams.

“I’m very proud of this moment,” Carolina Panthers president Christie Coleman told CNBC before the game. “It shows you can be anything as long as you do it well.”

ColemanWith a background in finance, he was named president of the Panthers in February 2022 and previously served as vice president and treasurer of Tepper Sports and Entertainment. Hedge fund founder David Tepper owns the Panthers.

Sandra Douglass Morgan, who has worked in gaming, law and business for more than two decades, was named president of the Raiders in July 2022 by owner Mark Davis.

Douglas Morgan said she didn’t miss the moment.

“We want to celebrate these are new groundbreaking moments, but at the same time, we’re doing our jobs, just like every other president in the league, and making sure we take care of the day-to-day business operations,” Douglas Morgan explain.

The NFL has made a major push in recent years to increase gender diversity within its ranks.

last year, 42.5% of NFL league office employees are femaleAccording to the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports at the University of Central Florida, this is a record high and “a significant improvement from a decade ago, when only 29.3% of women held these positions.”

The league says there are 243 women in its management ranks.

On the pitch, too, the numbers keep growing.

The NFL says there are currently 22 women in full-time coaching positions in the NFL. The league said that’s a record for any men’s professional sports league and represents an increase of 187 percent over the past five years.

As part of its efforts to cultivate and develop its women’s teams, the NFL hosts an annual Women’s Forum. According to the league, more than 400 women have participated in the program since its launch in 2017, and more than 250 opportunities have been provided for women at all levels of football.

Douglas Morgan said women’s interest in the NFL has been rising for years and hiring a more diverse employee base is crucial to connecting with these new fans.

“As our fans become more diverse, I think our employee base should too,” she said.

As the league looks to establish football as another avenue for growth in the sport, Coleman and Douglas Morgan say it’s another avenue for women to get involved in the sport.

Today, the NFL flag football program has more than 700,000 participants, providing a pathway for women to compete in football University.

Douglas Morgan and Coleman both said their teams’ owners have gone to great lengths to make them feel welcome in the league.

“Mark Davis always said, ‘Sandra, I don’t care if you’re white or black, no matter what, I hired you because you’re the best person for the job. You’re the best person to lead the Raiders. ’” Douglas Morgan told CNBC.

For women looking to break into male-dominated sports leagues, both executives said it’s important to be confident in your ability to learn new things and not be afraid to bet on yourself.

“You need to do your job, the job you have, you need to do it well so people can imagine you in the next job. And then I would say you need to be kind and also believe in yourself,” said Coleman.

“Don’t let them see you sweat,” Douglas Morgan said. “When you’re just two of 32 people, you know, we’re probably going to be scrutinized a little bit more because we’re the minority here. Make sure you have a good group of people around you to support you through any challenges that might come your way. .