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On Wednesday, Bay Collective announced the appointment of Van Ginhoven, the English national team's general manager working with Sarina Wiegman, as their overseer of worldwide women's football activities. The freshly established multi-team ownership group, which includes San Francisco’s Bay FC as the first club within its group, has a history in recruiting from the English FA.

The hiring this year of Cossington, the well-respected ex-technical director for the FA, to the CEO role served as a clear statement from the collective. She understands the women's game thoroughly and now she has assembled a management group with profound insight of the evolution of the women's game and filled with experience.

Van Ginhoven marks the third central staffer of Wiegman's coaching team to exit in the current year, with the chief executive exiting before the Euros and deputy manager, Veurink, stepping down to become head coach of Holland, but Van Ginhoven's choice was made earlier.

Moving on has been a surprising shift, but “I had decided to leave the FA quite a long time ago”, Van Ginhoven explains. “I had a contract for four years, just as Veurink and Wiegman had. As they re-signed, I previously indicated I was uncertain about renewing myself. I was already used to the thought that after the European Championship I would no longer be involved with the national team.”

The European Championship became a sentimental tournament due to that. “I remember very clearly, vividly, having a conversation with Sarina in which I informed her of my choice and then we said: ‘Our ultimate aspiration, what a triumph it would represent to clinch the European title?’ In reality, dreams don't aspirations are realized every day but, absolutely incredibly, it actually happened.”

Wearing a Netherlands-colored shirt, Van Ginhoven holds dual affections after her time in England, where she helped achieve securing consecutive European championships and served on the coaching setup for the Netherlands’ triumph at Euro 2017.

“The English side will forever have a dear spot in my heart. So, it will be challenging, particularly now knowing that the squad are scheduled to come for national team duty in the near future,” she notes. “When England plays the Netherlands, where do my loyalties lie? Right now I'm in Dutch colors, but tomorrow it’s white.”

In a speedboat, you can pivot and accelerate swiftly. In a lean group like this one, that is simple to achieve.

The American side was not initially considered as the management specialist concluded that a new chapter was needed, however the opportunity arose perfectly. Cossington began assembling the team and common principles were key.

“Essentially upon meeting we met we felt immediate synergy,” says she. “There was immediate understanding. We have spoken at length regarding multiple aspects around how you grow the game and what we think is the right way.”

These executives are not the only figures to uproot themselves from well-known positions in Europe's football scene for a fresh start across the Atlantic. The Spanish club's female football technical lead, Patricia González, has been introduced as the organization's new global sporting director.

“I was highly interested by the firm conviction regarding the strength of women's football,” González explains. “I'm familiar with Cossington for many years; during my tenure at Fifa, she served as England's technical director, and such choices are straightforward when you are aware you are going to be surrounded by colleagues who drive you.”

The extensive expertise among their staff sets them apart, says she, with Bay Collective among a number fresh club ownership ventures to launch lately. “It's a standout feature of our approach. Different approaches are acceptable, however we strongly feel in having that football knowledge on board,” she says. “All three of us have progressed in female football, probably for the best part of our lives.”

According to their online statement, the ambition of Bay Collective is to champion and pioneer a forward-thinking and durable system for women's football clubs, based on what works to meet the varied requirements of women. Doing that, with collective agreement, with no need to make the case for why you would take certain actions, is hugely liberating.

“I equate it to transitioning from a tanker to a speedboat,” states she. “You’re basically driving in uncharted waters – that’s a Dutch saying, not sure how it comes across – and it's necessary to trust your personal insight and skills to make the right decision. Adjusting course and speeding up is possible using a speedboat. Within a compact team such as ours, that is simple to achieve.”

She continues: “In this role, we begin with a clean canvas to start with. In my view, our work involves shaping the sport on a much broader level and that white paper permits you to undertake anything you desire, following the sport's regulations. This is the appeal of our joint endeavor.”

The aspirations are significant, the management are expressing sentiments the football community want to hear and it will be fascinating to observe the evolution of this organization, the club and other teams that may join.

For a flavour of what is to come, which elements are crucial in a high-performance setting? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve