As part of our celebrations – and in accordance with this year’s overarching theme of ‘Stories to Tell’ - we’ve spoken to the Club’s Parent Liaison and Inclusive Recruitment Manager, Sevvy Aslam, about his career in football to date and his role at Manchester City.
According to research from the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) in June 2023, less than 0.5% of professional footballers in the United Kingdom are of South Asian heritage.
This is something that Sevvy and his team, like many Clubs across the UK, are passionate to address, and provisions such as those implemented by City will contribute to increasing that figure in the years to come.
Since joining, Sevvy and his team have been at the forefront of that development, to ensure everyone feels valued and welcome at the Club.
Before joining Manchester City, he became the first South Asian Academy manager in English football - at Port Vale - over a decade ago.
When he took on this position, the Club were ranked 33rd of the 43 Category 3 academies according to productivity data from the Premier League. By 2019, they were 7th in the country.
However, having grown up seeing South Asian footballers underrepresented, the idea of creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone without unconscious bias has always been at the forefront of his ambitions.
That’s what led him to join Manchester City.
“To be part of a team able to break down barriers and cliches and open the doors is fantastic,” he explains.
“I’d have to say that being at a club that’s conducive to saying, ‘go and deliver it, Sevvy’ and any support that’s required has been there [is fantastic].”
Through inclusive staff CPD - workshops, fun day training sessions, fixtures, and festivals, Sevvy and his team are helping to create pathways for more South Asian footballers to succeed.
However, he is also helping to develop opportunities for a variety of people from a range backgrounds, faiths and footballing abilities.
Sevvy and his team’s work goes beyond the pitch, with them overseeing the introduction of specific provisions of halal meals and dedicated praying facilities such as the recent addition specifically of Jummah Friday prayer to be conducted in congregation and delivered by a senior Imam.
It’s something that Sevvy and all Muslim staff take pride in, and something that often comes as a more than pleasant surprise to both visitors and players alike.
He added: “It’s a great message that we’re sending out worldwide, showing what the Club is all about.
“It doesn’t matter about your background – if you have the knowledge and the knowhow, the Club will embrace it. When we link the Club’s consistent drive around diverse inclusivity it adds so much more value.
“For a Club of this stature to do this across the board sends a great message for me to everyone and anyone. Certainly, when I have visitors, if I offer them lunch then the first thing they’ll ask is if it’s halal.
“So, when I say yes, they’re surprised and you’re greeted with a ‘wow, okay’.
“When you’re then asked if there’s a space to pray, you can say ‘of course there is - we actually have dedicated prayer rooms’.
“For me, these are huge steps that are also actually quite easy ones to be made. Having the wider staff understanding that’s what’s involved also sends a message across to the whole Club. If I disappear for 20 minutes on a Friday, they know why.”
Ultimately, though, Sevvy believes the work that he and his team are undertaking serves a wider purpose.
Regardless of whether a youngster goes on to pursue a career in the game, at City or elsewhere, the ambition is for them to have enjoyed a positive experience from their time at the CFA and to feel like they belong especially with the provisions in place form a key part of that core value.
It was something Sevvy was intrigued to get involved with before he joined the Club and has been relishing ever since.
He finished: “To think that I’m here from the day when I first started playing football to being somewhere like City, working and developing footballers, has just been surreal.
“I’m here doing something I love and feel passionate about and believe can and will make a difference.”
