Eni Aluko has issued an apology to Arsenal legend Ian Wright for comments she made on BBC Radio Four programme Woman’s Hour about his work as a pundit on women’s football
Eni Aluko has apologised to Ian Wright after she claimed the Arsenal legend is “dominating” coverage of women’s football and blocking opportunities for female pundits. Wright is an ardent supporter of the women’s game and has regularly worked as a pundit on Lionesses games.
However, he has only been a pundit on one Women’s Super League game and was part of ITV’s coverage of just two matches at the 2023 Women’s World Cup. And Aluko has now apologised for her comments about Wright, insisting that she was simply “trying to make a broader point about the limited opportunities for women in football”.
In a post on Instagram, Aluko said: “lan Wright is a brilliant broadcaster and role model whose support for the women’s game has been significant.
“In my interview with Woman’s Hour this week, I was trying to make a broader point about the limited opportunities for women in football – whether that’s in coaching, broadcasting or commercial spaces – and the importance of creating more space for women to thrive on and off the pitch.
“But it was wrong for lan’s name to be raised in that conversation, and for that I sincerely apologise. I’ve known and worked with lan for many years and have nothing but love and respect for him.”
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In an interview on BBC Radio Four show Woman’s Hour, Aluko said: “I will never be able to usurp Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher. These are guys that have done it for a long time, they are brilliant broadcasters and rightly dominate their sport.
“I think the same should apply in the women’s game. 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.
“I think he should be aware of that. There is a limited amount of space available. I can’t dominate the men’s game in the way that – you know, you used Ian as an example – Ian is dominating the women’s game.
“We need to make sure that women are not being blocked from having a pathway to broadcasting in the women’s game. It is still new, it is still growing. There is a very fine amount of opportunities and I think that men need to be aware of that.”
When asked if she believes it is wrong that Wright is a pundit on women’s football, Aluko added: “I don’t know about wrong, but I think 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.
“It’s still new, it’s still growing. There’s a finite amount of opportunities and I think that men need to be aware of that.
“Men need to be aware that, you know, you’re in a growing sport, a growing sport for women, and we haven’t always had these opportunities, and so it’s about the awareness and supporting other women through that pathway.”
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