GirlsontheBall is a digital media platform founded in 2012 by Sophie Downey and Rachel O’Sullivan.
Duo GirlsontheBall (GOTB) offer unrivalled experience and deep-rooted expert analysis of Women’s Football having covered the game over land and sea for over 12 years
Winners of the ‘Women’s Football Broadcaster/Journalist of the Year’ award at the inaugural 2023 Women’s Football Awards
Winners of ‘Best in Women’s Football - Creators’ at the 2023 Football Content Awards
Previously worked and continue to work with Nike, The Guardian, Adobe, the Premier League, DAZN, Football Ramble, Three UK, The FA and FAWSL, Copa 90, Gravity Media, 90mins Football, BT Sport, Vauxhall, Continental Tires, Cadbury and UEFA
Appearances include: Sky Sports, talkSPORT and across BBC News, Breakfast, Football Focus, Women’s Football Show, Victoria Derbyshire and Radio 5 Live, Off the Ball, the Guardian Women’s Football Weekly
GOTB has been running for over 12 years and has covered over 1,000 games. Starting as a passion project run by Sophie and Rachel, it has grown exponentially, mirroring the growth of the women’s game in the UK. Their goal is to help bring the women’s game to as many people as possible.
From writing to photography, player interviews, podcasts and content, blogs, articles, presenting, broadcasting, social media take overs and more, they cover the top six leagues in England, the Scottish Premier League, the FAI Women’s National League in Ireland as well as the FA Cup, Continental Cup, Women’s Champions League, and of course, England and Ireland internationals. They also provide live Twitter coverage from every game they attend and extensive photographs and interviews from the matches.
On average, they travel 32,000 miles a year (when there is no pandemic) in their quest to see as much of the women’s game as possible. Sophie and Rachel have never been phased with obstacles standing in their way of covering a match. Whether it was COVID or weather conditions, they use their expert skills to grasp and showcase match day life through social media and photography.
In 2021, Rachel joined Football Ramble’s ‘Upfront’ Podcast team as a host alongside co-host Chloe Morgan, which is released every Tuesday, bringing us the biggest stories from the WSL and beyond, and takes us to the cultural heartbeat of the women's game. The podcast has been nominated for multiple awards.
Since early 2022 Sophie has been a freelance writer for The Guardian, helping to increase their women’s football coverage. She has now been a key part of two major tournaments for them, writing in both Euro 2022 and the World Cup in 2023. She is a co-writer for the Guardian Sport’s ‘Moving the Goalposts’, which covers the latest news throughout women’s football. And she is also a producer on the Guardian’s Women’s Football Weekly podcast, where she makes regular appearances.
Rachel and Sophie also work with 90min Football on their 90min Talks women’s football show. Since the 2023/24 season, Rachel has taken over hosting duties, while Sophie continues to offer the tactical insight she is known for.
One project GirlsontheBall took on during 2022 was building and running the inaugural Arnold Clark Cup’s social media channels from scratch, creating content using interviews and written pieces with their wide array of journalistic skills all while battling Covid restrictions.
During the 2022 Euros, GirlsontheBall partnered with 90-minute football and covered a game a day up and down the UK from their VW Fan Van, inviting guests and fans from across the country to join them in reporting on fixtures. Sophie was one of The Guardian’s primary tournament columnist.
In 2023, the duo covered the FIFAWWC down under in depth. They once again teamed up with 90min Football providing coverage of both England and Ireland’s exploits. Sophie continued to report for the Guardian throughout the tournament. They also teamed up with Cadbury, Minute Media, Off the Ball, Women in Football and Nike. While there, they launched their own podcast, G’day from GOTB giving their listeners an insight into both the matches they attended and life at the tournament.
In the 2023/24 season, GirlsontheBall launched their own weekly podcast, Extra-Time with GirlsontheBall, aimed at providing a sharp round up of all the weeks action, as well as covering key news in the game. They often provide bonus ‘super sub’ episodes featuring players, managers and more.
In 2024, GirlsontheBall followed the Lionesses at the u17’s World Cup in the Dominican Republic, providing coverage and partnership with Xero.
GirlsontheBall specialise in:
Content – videos, photography, writing
Host podcasts / host live videos / Event social media take overs
Blogs / Articles / Match reports
Hosting content, shows or events
Instagram stories/channel takeovers
Tournament coverage
Analysis / Insight / Research
Digital consultancy
Channel collaboration
Commentary / co-comms
Player interviews
Matchday video content including pieces to camera
Travel related content from trips
Photography
UEFA / FIFA accredited
Excellent working relationships with the FA, clubs and media
Experience working with and appearing for brands and partners
GOTB have really strong relationships with players – developed from youth level right through to senior and retirement. Players are therefore willing to share insightful, personal and unique experiences and information with them due to a strong sense of trust.
Contact GirlsontheBall’s agent: info@ttmanagement.co.uk