Eartha Pond

The professional footballer, educator and Councillor attended Queens Park Community School in the London Borough of Brent. Eartha Pond’s passion for the game far outweighed its accessibility. At school, she was regularly excluded from playing with the boys. Unwilling to take no for an answer, she negotiated her way into playground football by refusing to leave the pitch until they agreed to her participation, initially only allowing her to play in goal. 

One of eight children, Eartha leaned on her brothers to engage with local teams. When a local league comprised of predominantly male players from U12 to U18, Eartha impressed by playing for every age group by the time she was just 13. Later, she explained that these experiences contributed to her to physicality and strength in the women’s game. Football was an outlet for young kids in her community, and Eartha knew it was a passion she would fulfil.

Eartha signed for Arsenal Ladies Academy (now Arsenal Women Youth Teams) at age 12, joining one of the first cohorts to progress through the Club’s Academy dedicated to both education and football training. She is an accomplished and skillful competitor who has played at the highest level of domestic football, including spells with Arsenal, Chelsea, Charlton Athletic, Leeds United, Birmingham City, QPR, Everton, and Tottenham Hotspur, in addition to overseas experience in America. In 2017, Eartha and her Tottenham Hotspur Women teammates delivered an undefeated league campaign, and lifted the Women’s Premier League South trophy — a first for the Club — after a 4-0 defeat over West Ham at White Hart Lane. 

For most, excellence at the pinnacle of women’s football would be sufficient; however, Eartha is a true multi-hyphenate in action, with additional successful careers in education and community leadership. While playing for Tottenham, Eartha trained as a PE teacher. Within one year of qualifying as a teacher, she progressed into leadership and soon received accolades in the name of Sports Teacher of the Year, School of the Year, and Global Teacher Prize finalist out of more than 30,000 nominations. Her commitment to increasing and sustaining participation in sport for women and girls is woven into her decision-making at every level, not least in her current role as Assistant Vice-Principal.

This same commitment to equality of opportunity is the driving force behind her work in the community, most notably as a re-elected Local Councillor for Queens Park Community Council — the only Community Council in London. Eartha is a respected volunteer in her community with an undeniable ability to energize her peers into action. In particular, she has funnelled her resource, time, and influence into supporting the victims of a tragedy that occurred not far from home: the Grenfell Tower fire. Since 2017, she has raised more than £100k in support, and continues to campaign for improved government responses.

Eartha still finds time to shape the game she loves. In July 2021, she joined the Football Association Women’s Football Board as a Independent Non-Executive Director. She puts to use her 27 years of experience in women’s football to guide the delivery of the Board’s ‘Inspiring Positive Change’ strategy. When it comes to inspiring positive change in grassroots football, local politics, or the professional game, there is perhaps no one better suited to lead the charge than Eartha Pond.