Equality, Diversity and Inclusion continued to be a core part of the Club’s work during the 2024-25 season.
A host of internal staff networks – including Be Inclusive, the Women’s Network, EthniCity, and City and Proud – continued to offer unique experiences and support for colleagues across the business.
The Club’s work on gender equality during the 2024-25 season focused on visible role modelling and aimed to inspire, develop and celebrate women in leadership. The season marked the third year the Club has been a member of Women in Football and in March Nuria Tarre, City’s Chief Marketing and Fan Experience Officer, joined the Women in Football board.
As part of the International Women’s Day celebrations, the Club collaborated with Buy Women Built, a movement designed to champion female entrepreneurs. The collaboration delivered an inspirational campaign that culminated in a young-persons event in Manchester.
The campaign demonstrated the parallels of success between businesswomen and footballers and encouraged young fans to dream big, emphasising the importance of resilience, dedication and ambition.
The joint event, held at Diecast in Manchester, enabled local young people to hear directly from a host of female business owners as well as former England and City international players Steph Houghton and Karen Bardsley. There was also a celebration dinner and an online webinar featuring leaders from the Club.
The Club continued to celebrate diversity and promote inclusivity during the 2024-25 season.
For South Asian Heritage Month (SAHM), the City Football Academy (CFA) hosted a Football Festival on the indoor pitch in August 2024. A mini tournament brought 16 junior teams from across the North West to the CFA for the inaugural SAHM Cup.
The CFA also opened its doors to support the Manchester Football Association’s Midnight League during Ramadan, which provided members of the local Muslim community the opportunity to play football during the evening hours when pitches aren’t ordinarily available.
The Midnight League also offered Muslim women the opportunity to access coaching sessions and attend a Manchester City Women’s match.
The season marked the fourth year of the staff and community Iftar, the sixth year of the Muslim Chaplaincy and more than a decade of the Christian Chaplaincy for staff and players. The Iftar saw more than 120 guests attend the Etihad Stadium.
In August, the Club was once again represented at Manchester PRIDE. In addition to the flag-raising ceremony, staff took part in the Manchester PRIDE parade with representatives from several Official Supporters Clubs, who were also joined by the Club mascots, the Moonies.
The Club’s dedicated Access Team continues to deliver excellent service and support to our disabled and older supporters, with an average satisfaction rating of 93.8% for the 2024-25 season.
City continued to make improvements to matchday accessibility, and this season trialled using unused hospitality spaces for pop-up ‘Quiet Rooms’ for young fans who find matchdays more challenging. The trial was successful and will continue into the 2025-26 season, allowing the Club to supplement the provision of the very popular Sensory Room.
The Club continues to offer the highest level of Blue Badge parking in the Premier League. This season saw the introduction of a refundable deposit scheme for Blue Badge parking which improved utilisation on matchdays to 96%.
The Disabled Supporters Association continued to be supported by the Access Team, with quarterly meetings held at the Club.
