International Women's Day Visit: Lewes FC

With International Women’s Day just around the corner it was our pleasure to host Lewes Women’s Football Club on Tuesday 2nd March. The team were accompanied by Harvey’s Head Brewer, Miles Jenner, and Marketing Executive, Zoë Prescott, on a tour of Harvey’s brewing process and history before heading to the sample room for some well-earned beer tasting.

Harvey’s are proud sponsors of Lewes FC, and fully support their Equality Supporter’s Club which campaigns for gender equality in football (and beyond). Since launching their Equality FC Campaign in 2017, Lewes FC are currently the first and only club in the world to pay their male and female players an equal wage, in recognition of the inequality facing the women’s game.

Women’s football was very popular in the early 1900s drawing crowds of thousands to games, but they were banned from playing on Football League grounds in 1921, based on the principle that football was “unsuitable” for females. This was until attitudes began to shift towards the end of the 1960s, with the Women’s Football Association eventually being formed in 1969.

“There are striking similarities between women in football and women in brewing. Until the industrialisation of the early 1800s, brewing had historically been the domain of women since the time of the Egyptians and Sumerians. As brewing became less household based and more commercial, men took the helm."

"It’s been exciting, and affirming  to see the increasing prominence of women in our industry for me in the last 13 years, and we couldn’t be more supportive of Lewes FC Women as the trailblazers for theirs. I can’t think of a better example of the “we wunt be druv” Sussex spirit.” Zoë Prescott, Marketing Executive.

The Harvey’s team are very much looking forward to organising a reciprocal team visit to the Rooks training ground.

>>> Check out Lewes FC women’s matches coming up at The Dripping Pan here, or help create history in women’s football and become an owner.

>>> Find out more about the history of women in charge of Harvey's

>>> Looking for more information about women in the beer industry? Take a look at Dea Latis or the International Women's Collaboration Brew Day, which also takes place on the 8th March.