'I want to make change' - Jermaine Defoe hopes to boost ‘shocking’ number of black coaches and managers in football

Jermaine Defoe wants to inspire more black football coaches and managers after a report found that black employees hold just 4.4% of management-related positions in English football. According to Black Footballers Partnership (BFP) — an organisation of current and former players — there has been «no real change» to the number of black footballers hired in managerial positions in professional football at the end of their careers.

Ad Defore — who played for West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth, Sunderland and Bournemouth in England, and represented the Three Lions 57 times scoring 20 goals — is documenting his journey into management, and hopes to boost the number of black coaches moving into the industry. World Cup Qualification UEFABale achieves absolute perfection, Italy are out again! — The Warm-Up25/03/2022 AT 08:29 «I knew that figure to be honest and sometimes it's really frustrating talking about it because I feel like I've been talking about the same things for years,» Defoe told BBC's Sports Desk Podcast.

«When I've spoken to players like Les Ferdinand, Ian Wright, John Barnes, Sol Campbell, Dwight Yorke over the years about finishing playing and going into coaching and management and not getting the opportunity, it seems like you get little improvement but not much. »If this can happen for me, then the players for the next generation might consider going into coaching, but the numbers are shocking to be totally honest." Defoe retired from professional football last year in March 2022 and has since begun coaching Tottenham Hotspur's under-18 side.