Eni Aluko Renews Call for Women's Football to Be 'Gatekept' from Male Pundits
Former England international Eni Aluko has reiterated her controversial stance that women's football should be "gatekept" to protect opportunities for female pundits, specifically criticising the presence of male broadcasters like Ian Wright in the women's game.
Controversial Comments and Public Apology
Aluko first sparked controversy in April 2023 when she claimed on BBC Radio 4's Women's Hour that former Arsenal and England forward Ian Wright needed to be aware of "how much he's doing in the women's game." She suggested his presence was making it tougher for female pundits to find positions in the industry.
"I've worked with Ian a long time and I think he's a brilliant broadcaster, but I think he's aware of just how much he's doing in the women's game," Aluko said at the time. "We need to be conscious and we need to make sure that women are not being blocked from having a pathway into broadcasting in the women's game."
Aluko later issued a public apology to Wright, calling her comments "a mistake" and revealing she had attempted to apologise privately. Wright responded that he could not accept her apology but wanted to "move on" from the saga.
Frustration Over Women's Euros Coverage
Despite the controversy, Aluko was confirmed as part of ITV's punditry line-up for the 2023 Women's Euros, which saw England beat Spain in the final. Wright was not included on ITV's initial line-up but served as a pundit for both semi-finals and the final.
Speaking recently on the 90s Baby Show, Aluko expressed frustration about both Wright and former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha being part of the ITV and BBC punditry teams respectively for the final.
"Last year at the Women's Lionesses final, I'm sat in the stands, I wasn't on it for ITV for the final," Aluko said. "Farah Williams was next to me. Farah Williams has 170 caps for England."
"The two broadcasters that had the rights, ITV, BBC. On BBC, you've got Ellen White, Steph Houghton and Nedum Onuoha. No offence to Nedum Onuoha, nothing against him, I don't know whether he played for England or not. You're on the main panel for the final for England Women."
"Let's go over to ITV, I'm in the stands with 105 caps, so you have got two women with 290 caps, something ridiculous right. Right ITV, it's Ian Wright, Emma Hayes and Kaz Carney."
"So out of six spots, two have gone to men, meanwhile you have got 290 caps sitting in the stands. I have never done a final and I am probably going to struggle to think of any woman, female pundit, who has done a men's major final."
The 'Gatekeeping' Argument
Aluko claimed there needs to be an effort to "gatekeep the women's game in the same way the men's game is gatekept." She argued that many people, including herself, had "planted a lot of seeds" to help grow women's football and should now reap the benefits.
"From my perspective we didn't go through all of that blood, sweat and tears for women to now be second place in our own sport," Aluko declared. "What are we doing? The women's game should be by women, for women. Male allies should absolutely support that, but when it gets to the point where you are the main character of the show, we are just repeating the patriarchal stuff we have been fighting against."
Aluko added that she has not been chosen to serve as a pundit for a major men's final in 11 years of broadcasting, admitting the "main guys should always be ahead of me." However, she insisted female pundits are now "stuck" with opportunities being taken up by men in the women's game.
"The limited opportunities in the women's game are now being taken by men, but we can't go into the men's game and take the same opportunities. We are stuck," Aluko continued. "I can never do the men's final. The only way I have an opportunity to do a final is the women's final and now I can't do the women's final."
Social Media Backlash and Wider Context
Clips of Aluko's comments were posted on social media, with broadcaster Piers Morgan among those to criticise her remarks. "Insufferable. If she was ten times as talented as she thinks she is, she'd still be nowhere near the talent of Ian Wright - on or off the pitch," Morgan wrote.
Despite Aluko's claims that female pundits cannot work on men's finals, her former England teammate Karen Carney was part of TNT Sport's punditry line-up for the men's Champions League final last year, joining Rio Ferdinand and Owen Hargreaves.
Aluko's comments come amid ongoing concerns about her broadcasting career. In November 2023, she claimed her punditry work had dried up following social media attacks by Joey Barton, who received a suspended prison sentence for sending "grossly offensive" messages to Aluko and fellow pundit Lucy Ward.
Aluko revealed she had been pursuing more opportunities outside the UK and expressed fear that she could be physically harmed as a consequence of Barton's posts, which included comparing her and Ward to serial murderers Fred and Rose West.
