Bay Collective to invest in premier women’s football clubs across the globe
To begin operations in 2025 on the heels of a successful inaugural season for Bay FC
Sixth Street, a leading global investment firm and the lead investor in Bay FC of the National Women’s Soccer League, today announced Kay Cossington, MBE, will join Sixth Street as Head of Global Women’s Football and serve as CEO of Bay Collective. Bay Collective will officially launch in 2025 and is a multi-club global organization dedicated to holistic excellence and the growth of women’s football.
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As one of the world’s foremost experts on women’s football and the first ever Women’s Technical Director at The English Football Association (FA), Cossington has focused on holistic development designed specifically for women across all levels of the sport. From training to playing styles to infrastructure and long-term career advancement, she has been the chief architect responsible for the transformational success of England women’s football over the past decade. Kay will remain in her role with The FA until May 31, 2025, to support a seamless transition.
In her new role, Cossington will build a sport- and athlete-first model supported by Sixth Street’s extensive resources, business-building experience, and scale.
“My lifelong vocation has been to empower women athletes and bring the strategy, resources, and recognition to our sport that it deserves,” said Cossington. “I am incredibly proud of the standard of excellence we’ve achieved at The FA, and my time building this organization and seeing all that it continues to produce will forever be one of the most fulfilling periods of my career.
“As women’s football has experienced rapid growth in recent years, I believe we are at a critical inflection point. Now is the time to use this momentum to set even higher standards and start building something new and lasting to take the sport to its next glass-breaking level.
“For decades, I have studied women’s football at every age and rank, across regions, leagues, and styles. My conclusion is clear: there is a better way to develop players on and off the pitch, build championship clubs, and keep our athletes at the center of everything we do. We only need the resources and the will to do it.
“Alan and the team at Sixth Street share that vision, and I am excited about what we’re going to build together as we create a new kind of captivating, empowering, and winning global women’s football experience.”
Bay Collective will provide women athletes with the resources for enduring success, including world-class playing, training, and performance infrastructure, professional development, brand visibility and enhancement, data science and analytics, and coaching and technical staff. As part of the launch, Cossington seeks to hire talented professionals from different backgrounds, cultures, and experiences to bring varied perspectives and skills to best position the organization over the long term.
“As we continue our investment in women’s football’s global growth, we are thrilled to support Kay in this new and exciting entrepreneurial phase of her career. Through her groundbreaking efforts at The FA, she has been responsible for many aspects of the growth and improvement of the global women’s game, and we feel very lucky to have her on our team,” said Alan Waxman, Co-Chair of Bay FC and Co-Founder and CEO of Sixth Street. “Built on our shared values and commitment to a one-team culture, the combination of Kay’s leadership and Sixth Street’s deep experience and resources will challenge conventional wisdom and use the power of women’s football to inspire and improve the experience of athletes, fans, and sporting communities around the globe.”
Upon launch, Bay FC will be the first club served by Bay Collective, supporting the team’s commitment to player centricity and developing athletes on and off the field. Cossington will also advise Sixth Street as it engages with its current and future sporting partners on strategies to best support women athletes and fans in their communities.
In addition to its landmark investment to co-found Bay FC, Sixth Street is a strategic investment partner to many other leading global organizations across sports, media, and entertainment, including FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and the San Antonio Spurs, and the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys through the firm’s majority investment in Legends, the world’s preeminent premium experiences company. Sixth Street also recently received pre-approval as one of the few private capital firms cleared to invest with National Football League teams.
About Sixth Street
Sixth Street is a leading global investment firm with over $100 billion in assets under management and committed capital.* Sixth Street uses its long-term flexible capital, data-enabled capabilities, and One Team culture to develop themes and offer solutions to companies across all stages of growth. For more information, visit www.sixthstreet.com or follow Sixth Street on social media.
*For more information and additional disclosures visit www.sixthstreet.com.
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