Romaney Pinnock: FC Copenhagen has the best support structure for women’s football

The South African has been with the Danish outfit since last October, after spending a year working in a similar role at the South African Football Association.

Speaking to SABC Sport, Pinnock says it was a seamless transition for FC Copenhagen to introduce a women’s team, with the club’s existing structures providing strong support.

“This is the most successful club in the country. I am fortunate to be here. It is a very well-established club, which means when they added the women’s team, there was support already.

“We have an overlapping structure. Sports is my department, but things like commercial, marketing, communication and HR are shared services and integrated across the men’s and women’s sides. We are lucky because it is such a well-established brand. Even when they launched the women’s team, it already had a huge fan base,” said Pinnock.

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Pinnock also played a key role in helping former University of Cape Town goalkeeper Jessica Williams secure a deal with FC Copenhagen.

She says their relationship dates back several years, and has always seen something special from Williams from grassroots.

“When I was at Badgers, we had a programme where Jess could come in and train with the club. There was no contract in place, though. She was just getting the exposure and experience.

“I have known her for years and built a solid relationship with her when she joined the University of Cape Town,” added Pinnock.

Pinnock believes more South African players have the talent and potential to play abroad, but says they must remain authentic to their style of play.

“I think we have talent at home. The issue is collecting data on South African players - there isn’t much data.

“What made things easy for me is that I am South African and I know most of the players and have witnessed them play from grassroots. I do believe South African players have a great chance of signing abroad, but they should remain authentic and stick to their style of play. That’s what sets them apart,” she expressed.