{"id":5324,"date":"2026-05-07T10:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T10:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=5324"},"modified":"2026-05-07T10:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T10:20:09","slug":"jamie-carragher-delighted-as-womens-football-awards-continues-to-flourish-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=5324","title":{"rendered":"Jamie Carragher delighted as Women&#8217;s Football Awards &#8216;continues to flourish&#8217; | Football"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/carra-f5c8.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=646\" class=\"article-image wp-image-27889942\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"sync\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>Jamie Carragher is back to host the ceremony alongside Gabby Logan (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Jamie Carragher and Toni Duggan have hailed the continued growth of the Women\u2019s Football Awards ahead of the fourth edition in London tonight.<\/p>\n<p>Launched in 2022 in partnership with <em>Metro,<\/em> it has quickly become a major and influential awards event for women\u2019s football across Britain and Europe<\/p>\n<p>And the flagship event will once again celebrate the game\u2019s brightest stars, trailblazers and game-changers \u2013 both on and off the pitch \u2013 in a star-studded event featuring many of the biggest names in the sport.<\/p>\n<p>Former Liverpool defender Carragher will return to co-host the night for a fourth successive year, and is delighted to see how rapidly the awards have grown.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018This night has just continued to flourished, hasn\u2019t it,\u2019 he told <strong>Metro <\/strong>ahead this year\u2019s awards. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Over the last decade or so, women\u2019s football feels like it\u2019s getting bigger and bigger each year, and it\u2019s been great to play my part with this night. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Once I got involved with it, I enjoyed it, and kept doing it. And as with the women\u2019s game, each year the awards are growing and getting bigger and better.\u2019<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"594\" height=\"396\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-2272700601.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=594\" class=\"article-image wp-image-28260282\" alt=\"FBL-EUR-C1-WOMEN-ARSENAL-LYNONNES\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>Alessia Russo won Player of the Year at the 2025 Women\u2019s Football Awards (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The rapid growth of the WSL in recent years means players from six different countries have been shortlisted for the two main awards.<\/p>\n<p>And Carragher believes that \u2018internation flavour\u2019 will only help the league become the standout product in women\u2019s domestic football.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It\u2019s similar to the men\u2019s Premier League \u2013 you want the best of everything,\u2019 he added. \u2018You want the best players in the world, the best managers but also a pathway for young English players and obviously young English girls as well. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018So it\u2019s always about striking that right balance between the two.\u00a0I don\u2019t think you can probably ever get that perfect with lots of people\u2019s eyes because we\u2019re all probably want slightly different things. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-2202273856.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=646\" class=\"article-image wp-image-28260652\" alt=\"England v Spain - UEFA Women's Nations League 2024\/25 Grp A3 MD2\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>Former England footballer Toni Duggan is an ambassador for the Women\u2019s Football Awards (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u2018But I think you do have to have that international favour in a league. We\u2019ve seen the strength of the Premier League and that definitely only helps the WSL.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Headlining the shortlist for the standout individual honour is Bunny Shaw, who has enjoyed another prolific season in front of goal for Manchester City. <\/p>\n<p>The Jamaica international won Player of the Year back in 2024, and former Lionesses star Duggan, an ambassador for the Women\u2019s Football Awards, would not be surprised to see the 29-year-old claim it again tonight.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018She\u2019s been absolutely incredible,\u2019 Duggan told <strong>Metro.<\/strong> \u2018I love Bunny as a player. I met with her recently for an interview, and even off the pitch, I think her enthusiasm and her ability to want to achieve more is so impressive.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"594\" height=\"396\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-2268816146.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=594\" class=\"article-image wp-image-28260671\" alt=\"Manchester United v Manchester City - Barclays Women's Super League\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>Bunny Shaw is the favourite to take home the main award (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u2018She\u2019s had so much success as well due to the players around her, and I think she would say that herself. Her and Viv (Miedema) staying fit has helped Man City so much, and when you add in the likes of Lauren Hemp supplying her to get those goals. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018I think City as a whole have had a fantastic season but Bunny is just unstoppable when she gets them oportunities If she wins, it wouldn\u2019t be a surprise to me. She\u2019d definitely have my vote.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Thursday\u2019s event will also look to celebrate the important figures and organisations that work behind the scenes to help drive the sport forward, which reprsents a vital part of the awards for Duggan.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I think that\u2019s what makes me the most proud with these awards,\u2019 she added. \u2018I came through in a generation where we actually had a lot of success compared to those who came before us when the game wasn\u2019t professional, when there weren\u2019t the opportunities that I have.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018So it\u2019s kind of to thank those people, to recognise those people, to also recognise the people behind the scenes that people aren\u2019t too familiar with. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Because there\u2019s people putting in so much effort behind the scenes in women\u2019s football, whether it be brands, whether it be partnerships, kit men, people in the canteen. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018There are so many trailblazers that need to deserve to be recognised. So the Women\u2019s Football Awards brings that opportunity to recognise these people, and not just the footballers on the pitch.\u2019<\/p>\n<div class=\"factbox\" data-ico=\"factbox_article\" data-track-module=\"factbox_article\">\n<h2 class=\"factbox-title\">\n<p>\t\t\t\tSHEIN Women\u2019s Football Awards shortlist\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<div class=\"factbox-content\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Player of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Lauren Hemp (Manchester City)<br \/>Bunny Shaw (Manchester City)<br \/>Kerstin Casparij (Manchester City)<br \/>Jess Park (Manchester United)<br \/>Ella Toone (Manchester United)<br \/>Kiko Seike (Brighton &#038; Hove Albion)<br \/>Hannah Hampton (Chelsea)<br \/>Kirsty Hanson (Aston Villa)<br \/>Mariona Caldentey (Arsenal)<br \/>Alessia Russo (Arsenal)<br \/>Vivianne Miedema (Manchester City)<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Young Player of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>T\u014dko Koga (Tottenham Hotspur)<br \/>Laura Blindkilde Brown (Manchester City)<br \/>Michelle Agyemang (Brighton &#038; Hove Albion)<br \/>Freya Godfrey (London City Lionesses)<br \/>Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea)<br \/>Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United)<br \/>Grace Clinton (Manchester City)<br \/>Aoba Fujino (Manchester City)<br \/>Nelly Las (Leicester City)<br \/>Ruby Mace (Everton)<br \/>Lenna Gunning-Williams (Tottenham Hotspur)<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">International Player of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Klara B\u00fchl (Bayern Munich)<br \/>Caroline Weir (Real Madrid)<br \/>Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)<br \/>Rom\u00e9e Leuchter (Paris Saint-Germain)<br \/>Pernille Harder (Bayern Munich)<br \/>Ewa Pajor (Barcelona)<br \/>Claudia Pina (Barcelona)<br \/>Melchie Dumornay (Lyon)<br \/>Tessa Wullaert (Inter Milan)<br \/>Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid)<br \/>Victoria Lopez (Barcelona)<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Club of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Manchester City<br \/>Wrexham<br \/>London City Lionesses<br \/>Manchester United<br \/>Chelsea<br \/>Glasgow City<br \/>Tottenham Hotspur<br \/>Arsenal<br \/>Charlton Athletic<br \/>Hearts<br \/>Brighton &#038; Hove Albion<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Media Figure of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Kelly Cates<br \/>Karen Carney MBE<br \/>Lianne Sanderson<br \/>Laura Woods<br \/>Reshmin Chowdhury<br \/>Alex Scott MBE<br \/>Mina Ibrahim<br \/>Suzanne Wrack<br \/>Katie Whyatt<br \/>Faye Carruthers<br \/>Mollie and Rosie Kmita<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Best Marketing Campaign<\/h3>\n<p>Sports Direct &#038; Fresh Base Productions \u2013 Legacy Starts Here<br \/>AXA \u2013 Keep On Kicking<br \/>Lidl \u2013 Never Stop Growing<br \/>Adidas &#038; Intersport \u2013 Make Football Their Game<br \/>Chelsea &#038; Here We Flo \u2013 We Don\u2019t Bleed Blue. We Bleed. Period.<br \/>PepsiMAX &#038; Hope&#038;Glory \u2013 Thirsty for More<br \/>Unilever \u2013 Hellmann\u2019s Russo Burger<br \/>The FA &#038; Disrupt \u2013 Made For This Game<br \/>WSL Football &#038; Anomaly \u2013 Watch This<br \/>Nike &#038; Wieden+Kennedy London \u2013 IIOME<br \/>Heineken \u2013 Cheers to the Superstitious Fans<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Best Grassroots Initiative<\/h3>\n<p>Liverpool FA \u2013 She Inspires<br \/>GoCardless \u2013 Grassroots Football Partnership<br \/>Tottenham Hotspur Foundation \u2013 Girls &#038; Women Programme<br \/>Flutter UK &#038; Ireland \u2013 Cash4Clubs<br \/>McDonald\u2019s \u2013 Fun Football<br \/>Steven Gerrard Academy \u2013 Girls Football Programme<br \/>Electric Ireland \u2013 Game Changers NI<br \/>Starling Bank \u2013 Kick On With Starling<br \/>Octopus Energy \u2013 Kits For Kids<br \/>Manchester City \u2013 City in the Community<br \/>SP Energy Networks \u2013 Wrexham Partnership<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Brand of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Lucozade Sport<br \/>Adidas<br \/>EA Sports<br \/>British Gas<br \/>Skoda UK<br \/>Rexona<br \/>Barclays<br \/>Adobe<br \/>Three UK<br \/>VISA<br \/>Nike<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Best Social Media<\/h3>\n<p>Juventus<br \/>The FA \u2013 Lionesses<br \/>Chelsea<br \/>Newcastle United<br \/>Aston Villa<br \/>Tottenham Hotspur<br \/>Bristol City<br \/>Manchester United<br \/>Rangers<br \/>Manchester City<br \/>Adobe \u2013 Women\u2019s FA Cup<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Global Impact Award<\/h3>\n<p>PlayStation<br \/>VisitMalta<br \/>VISA<br \/>Adidas<br \/>Iberdrola<br \/>PepsiCo<br \/>Booking.com<br \/>Amazon<br \/>Google Pixel<br \/>Kynisca<br \/>Nike<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Best Fan Engagement<\/h3>\n<p>Disney+<br \/>EA Sports<br \/>Chelsea<br \/>London City Lionesses<br \/>Birmingham City<br \/>Panini<br \/>Glasgow City<br \/>Havas Play<br \/>Charlton Athletic<br \/>TikTok<br \/>YouTube<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Legal Team of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Linklaters<br \/>RPC<br \/>Thackray Williams<br \/>Evelyn Partners<br \/>Lawrence Stephens Limited<br \/>Penningtons Manches Cooper<br \/>Tottenham Hotspur Legal Team<br \/>Capital Law<br \/>Mills &#038; Reeve<br \/>Paul Robinson Solicitors<br \/>Bird &#038; Bird<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Outstanding Corporate Social Responsibility Award<\/h3>\n<p>Admiral<br \/>Lidl<br \/>Adobe<br \/>Unilever<br \/>Domestic &#038; General<br \/>Xero<br \/>Apple<br \/>RSK<br \/>Bute Energy<br \/>The Premier League<br \/>Deloitte<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Equality, Diversity &#038; Inclusion Award<\/h3>\n<p>Arsenal<br \/>EE<br \/>Pixel FC Academy<br \/>The FA<br \/>West Ham United<br \/>Mastercard<br \/>Utility<br \/>Brighton &#038; Hove Albion<br \/>VISA<br \/>Three UK<br \/>Liverpool<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Community Impact Award<\/h3>\n<p>Sunderland<br \/>Carpenters Group<br \/>Bristol City<br \/>Crane Worldwide Logistics<br \/>Her Game Too<br \/>Xero<br \/>London City Lionesses<br \/>interested<br \/>Brighton &#038; Hove Albion<br \/>E.ON<br \/>Goals4Girls<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Football Business of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>ORRECO<br \/>Mercury13<br \/>We Are Athlete<br \/>CAA SPORTS<br \/>Gravity Media<br \/>LiveScore Group<br \/>Foudys<br \/>EA Sports<br \/>Kynsica<br \/>Sport five<br \/>Twenty3<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Football Agency of the Year<\/h3>\n<p>Wasserman<br \/>CAA SPORTS<br \/>CMG SPORTS<br \/>Gen Z Football<br \/>Ignite Talent<br \/>Tongue Tied Management<br \/>P.L.G<br \/>A&#038;V Sports Group<br \/>Gestifute<br \/>Livida Sports<br \/>Quantum Sport<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Football Business Trailblazer<\/h3>\n<p>Kay Cossington<br \/>Aki Mandhar<br \/>Maggie Murphy<br \/>Sarah Batters<br \/>Zoe Johnson<br \/>Jemma White<br \/>Sola Participant<br \/>Charlotte O\u2019Neill<br \/>Laura Downey<br \/>Laura Montgomery<br \/>Liz Ellen<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Best Breakthrough Business<\/h3>\n<p>E.l.f Beauty<br \/>Modibodi<br \/>Mercedes-Benz UK<br \/>Airbnb<br \/>British Gas<br \/>Guinness<br \/>AFTA Studios<br \/>P.L.G<br \/>Revolut<br \/>Skechers<br \/>Crocs EU<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Women\u2019s Football Champion<\/h3>\n<p>Rose Read<br \/>Nadine Kessler<br \/>Nikki Doucet<br \/>Jemma White<br \/>Michele Kang<br \/>Ebru K\u00f6ksal<br \/>Debbie Hewitt MBE<br \/>Joelle Murray<br \/>Rachel Pavlou<br \/>Simone Pound MBE<br \/>Vic Akers OBE<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Game Changer Award<\/h3>\n<p>Rachel Yankey OBE<br \/>Gillian Coultard MBE<br \/>Eartha Pond<br \/>Shelley Kerr MBE<br \/>Kelly Smith MBE<br \/>Nikita Parris<br \/>Ellen White MBE<br \/>Gilly Flaherty<br \/>Fran Kirby<br \/>This is U cut<br \/>Jess Fishlock MBE<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Off The Pitch Award<\/h3>\n<p>Stephen Lansdown CBE<br \/>Michael Williamson<br \/>Matt Johnson<br \/>Bethan Woolley<br \/>Tammy Parlour MBE<br \/>Good Plans<br \/>Rachel Pavlou<br \/>Liz Ellen<br \/>Lola Ogunbote<br \/>Helen Hardy<br \/>Jo Osborne<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"\"><strong>For more stories like this,\u00a0check our sport page<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\"><strong>Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on <meta charset=\"utf-8\"\/><br \/>\n<strong>Facebook, <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Metro_Sport\">Twitter<\/a> and\u00a0Instagram<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: Jamie Carragher names the player who saved Arsenal\u2019s season after reaching Champions League final<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: Jamie Carragher makes Arsenal Premier League title claim after Man City draw to Everton<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: Jamie Carragher makes Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid prediction for Champions League semi-final<\/span><\/p>\n<section id=\"share-buttons-bottom\" class=\"share-buttons share-buttons-bottom\">\n\t\t\t<span><svg><title>Comment now<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#social-comment\" href=\"#social-comment\"\/><\/svg><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"share-bar-comments__label\">Comments<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<span><svg><title>Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#social-preferred-source\" href=\"#social-preferred-source\"\/><\/svg><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"share-bar-preferred-source__label\">Add as preferred source<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/section>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jamie Carragher is back to host the ceremony alongside Gabby Logan (Picture: Getty) Jamie Carragher&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5325,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5324"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5324\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}