LCFC Women Appoint Willie Kirk As Director Of Football, Women & Girls
Joining the Foxes in a newly formed role, the 44-year-old will be responsible for delivering sustained on-pitch performance, academy excellence and technical growth, while taking a leading role in creating a motivated and successful environment at Belvoir Drive.
The development and delivery of these strategies is key for the continued growth of women’s and girls’ football at LCFC Women, with significant progress made since the team’s acquisition by King Power International in the summer of 2020.
Making the transition into a new role, Kirk joins the Foxes with extensive Barclays Women’s Super League experience having held senior coaching positions within the women’s game over several years.
He led Hibernian Women to the Scottish Cup and League Cup during a four-year spell between 2010 and 2014, before moving to Bristol City Women in 2015 and securing promotion to the Barclays Women’s Super League a year later.
A spell as assistant manager to Casey Stoney at Manchester United Women followed for Kirk, who then made the move to Everton as manager in 2018, where he led the Merseyside outfit to the 2020 Women’s FA Cup Final during a successful period at the helm.
Leicester City Chief Executive Susan Whelan said: “The appointment of Willie to this new role represents another important step forward for LCFC Women, whose progress since turning professional in 2020 has been exciting for everyone involved and the Club continues to go from strength to strength.
“Willie’s experience within the women’s game will be an important addition to our structure as we look to continue our vision for the development of women’s football in Leicestershire – both across First Team operations right through to our Academy pathways.
“On behalf of everyone at the Football Club, I’m delighted to welcome Willie to his new position with LCFC Women and look forward to seeing what he can bring to the role.”
New Director of Football, Women and Girls, Willie Kirk said: “I’m thrilled to be joining LCFC Women ahead of the new season. The progress this Football Club has made in such a short space of time has been remarkable and the commitment shown by the ownership means the team has a fantastic platform to continue that trajectory.
“To have elite facilities like Belvoir Drive and to play football at King Power Stadium puts LCFC Women in a fantastic position to not only grow, but to have a sustained impact on the women’s game.
“The opportunity to join a Football Club that already has such an impressive infrastructure of staff in place is such an exciting one and I’m looking forward to getting started. Lydia Bedford and her staff did a wonderful job last season and I’m excited to support them in achieving their targets for the new campaign, as well as the progress of our Academy.”
LCFC Women return to Barclays Women’s Super League action on Sunday 11 September when Lydia Bedford's team travel to Walton Hall Park for an opening-day encounter with Everton.