Women’s football chief Dawn Airey wins Lifetime Achievement Award at prestigious European Diversity Awards

Barclay’s FA Women’s Super League Chair Dawn Airey won the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the European Diversity Awards for her work to advance the women’s game.

Ms Airey was crowned winner in recognition for also being at the top of business for over four decades, including as a non-executive director at Channel 4 and former CEO of Getty Images.

The high-profile British broadcasting figure was also ’s Director of Programmes and held two stints as Chair/CEO. She is also a former Director of Global Content for ITV and Managing Director of Channels and Services for Sky.

Elsewhere at the EDAs, sponsored by United Health Group and hosted by Jane Hill, it was a big night for football as Oleksandr Zinchenko was bestowed with a prestigious honour.

The Arsenal star won the coveted Media Diversity Champion of the Year for his work to protest against the atrocious campaign being waged by and President Vladimir Putin against his war-torn homeland of .

He gave an impassioned speech which was shown at the ceremony about the situation Ukraine is facing and what more needs to be done to end the war which is causing misery to so many, in front of stars such as Dame Kelly Holmes, Emeli Sande and Dr Ranj Singh.

The Ukraine international attended an anti-war vigil earlier this year, following Russia’s invasion, and the 25-year-old, who has 48 caps for his country, has been vocal in support for his homeland, previously declaring he “could not stay back” while his country is attacked.

The awards celebrate leading diversity and inclusion champions while recognising achievements across race, age, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity and religious belief over the past year.

Dawn Airey said: ‘I was genuinely shocked when my name was called out as the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement award. I am fortunate to have worked at the top of some of the most enterprising and trailblazing companies in Britain, where I have consistently championed the role of women.

Linda Riley, European Diversity Awards founder, added: ‘We are honoured to have been given the opportunity to shine a light on Dawn Airey for her truly remarkable work at the top of British broadcasting. Her work also extends to the world of business, helping major corporations navigate through periods of intense change.

‘You could hear a pin drop in the room while Dawn was speaking and her remarks reinforced why she is truly a deserving winner.

‘Elsewhere, there were so many more deserving winners and everyone shortlisted has made real achievements in race, age, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or religious belief over the past year.

‘The corporations and business leaders who picked up awards are dynamic and reflect the huge efforts corporate organisations are now making to improve diversity and inclusion. We should never forget how far we’ve come but there is still so much more to do.’

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