At the end of July 2025, Middlesex Football Association announced the ground-breaking moment that they made history by becoming the first completely female-led County Football Association.
This key milestone followed the appointment of Philina Toiny as Chair, who joined the CEO, Kayleigh Saunders, and President, Barbara Bivens, ensuring all the highest leadership roles were occupied by women.
Historically dominated by men, these football leadership positions are now seeing a rising influence of women, following a record 56% increase in the number of women and girls playing the sport over the past four years.
Outside of sport, the Institute of Directors also reports “near-revolutionary change” with nearly half (47%) of new board appointments to FTSE 100 companies, and more than 35% of leadership roles, being filled by women.
A respected leadership expert with a unique viewpoint, Drew Povey, shares his thoughts on the benefits of all-female leadership teams, backing his insights with compelling data from some of the most recent, reliable, and prominent studies.
1. The real edge? Collaborative and emotionally intelligent leadership.
Diversity isn’t the destination; it’s the starting point. When teams are truly inclusive, they stop mirroring one voice and start magnifying performance. This is especially true in leadership, where different perspectives don’t dilute clarity, they sharpen it.
At the heart of this is cognitive diversity and the impact it has on how decisions are made. Female leaders, for instance, often bring more collaborative and emotionally intelligent approaches to leadership – qualities that are especially valuable in high-stakes, complex environments.
These insights are supported by a 2024 study on gender and leadership styles, which found that women tend to lead in more inclusive, empathetic, and people-focused ways, ultimately benefiting team dynamics and strategic outcomes.
2. Psychological safety starts at the top.
The real question isn’t “Why can all-female teams succeed?”, it’s “Why did it take so long to give them the chance?”. Female-led teams often foster cultures of inclusion, trust, and psychological safety which are all proven ingredients of stronger performance and innovation.
Code-named Project Aristotle, Google conducted a two-year research project starting in 2012 to uncover exactly what makes teams successful. The findings revealed that success depends less on who is on the team and more on how they work together, with psychological safety emerging as one of the most important factors.
Essentially, this environment of strong psychological safety meant that team members felt safer and more confident taking risks, speaking up, and sharing ideas without fear of being viewed as ignorant, incompetent, or disruptive.
This is echoed in McKinsey’s 2024 Women in the Workplace report which highlights how women may have a greater awareness of interpersonal dynamics, specifically microaggressions – with 28% of women recognising these comments and actions compared to just 11% of men.
This heightened social awareness suggests that women leaders may be more attuned to subtle forms of bias or exclusion, making them better equipped to create inclusive, respectful environments – something that’s directly linked to improved psychological safety and team performance.
3. Leading with strength and sensitivity, not command and control.
The best leaders don’t lead with ego – they lead with purpose, empathy, and presence. And all-female teams often bring a different, more evolved style of leadership by blending strength with vulnerability and championing connection over control.
Certain leadership behaviours, such as active listening, people development, and strategic patience are therefore more common in female-led teams. These behaviours align with what research defines as transformational leadership.
As per the findings of a 1992 meta-analysis of 61 studies, female leaders demonstrate more transformational leadership styles, meaning they’re more likely to embody positive aspects of the organisation and use inspirational methods to engage their team.
This contrasts with their male counterparts who tend to favour traditional transactional leadership and prioritise ‘command-and-control’ models.
Final thoughts: When leadership evolves, performance follows.
Female leadership is a common topic for leadership consultancies, but tackling this topic isn’t about making the blanket statement that women are better leaders than men.
The push towards all-female leadership teams is undoubtedly a welcomed and well-intentioned one, seeking to address the historical exclusion of women’s skills from the leadership arena.
And while it’s true that women have been restricted by glass ceilings for far too long, the key to strong leadership is in crafting a balanced team with different views and approaches.
Because this isn’t a diversity story, it’s a high-performance one. The best leadership teams don’t look the same, think the same, or act the same. They’re built with different perspectives, experiences, and strengths, and united by a shared sense of purpose.
Ultimately, true leadership progress lies not in outright exclusion or overcorrection, but in building inclusive leadership teams where diverse talents – regardless of gender – can thrive.