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DELIGHTED: Rabbatt

A JAMAICAN-BORN businesswoman has become the first ever woman to be elected to the board of the Football Association.

Heather Rabbatts, who lived in the Jamaican capital Kingston until she was three, became the first female member in the FA’s 149-year history after the FA Council ratified the appointment of her and Roger Devlin as independent non-executive directors.

The 56-year-old lawyer and broadcaster is the former deputy chair of Millwall FC and was also a governor of the BBC from 1999-2001. Despite leaving school with hardly any O-levels, she took evening classes and was accepted into the London School of Economics and became a barrister in 1981.

Rabbatts made her name as the youngest council chief in the country and rose to prominence as chief executive of the London Borough of Lambeth.

Rabbatts, who was awarded the CBE in 2000, said of her appointment:

“Having worked across media, business and football I hope to bring those experiences to my work at the FA. In particular, over many years, including my time at Millwall, I have worked across communities to both improve participation and to develop talent. I am obviously delighted to be joining the board at the FA and working with colleagues to support the future of football in England."