Over the last year, Exeter City Women have successfully transitioned into being fully managed by Exeter City Football Club, following their move from Exeter City Community Trust.
This significant milestone, which has been met on schedule, has been guided by Jen Dixon, who has served as both director and executive chair of the Women’s Team during this period. With a strategy and operational framework now in place, the role of executive chair will now be split and replaced by chief executive of Women’s Football and a separate chair of the women’s board. Jen will continue in her role as chair of the women’s board during this next stage of transition.
The next phase of development will see the implementation of the women’s strategy for professional football with a focus on ensuring sustainability. This will include the appointment of a chief executive of Women’s football with experience of progressing to tier two.
The team will continue its close collaboration with Exeter College Women’s Football Academy and Exeter City Community Trust (ECCT). ECCT provides a comprehensive female football pathway, starting from age three and incorporating the Exeter City Girls’ Development Centre and Emerging Talent Centres to nurture and develop promising young players. As part of this evolution, the Women’s development squad has been integrated into the first team structure, with top-performing players joining the senior training environment to further enhance their progression.
Jen said: "This has been an incredibly important period of change for Exeter City Women, and I’m proud of the progress we’ve made in such a short space of time."
“We are hugely grateful to the club and to Exeter City Supporters’ Trust which has championed the women’s team, both in terms of leading change and in donations and sponsorship. Thank you also to our supporters, who have backed the team in increasing numbers this season, our volunteers and ambassadors who have helped to create an amazing environment on and off the pitch.”
Jen added: “As well as transitioning the Women’s Team across to the club, this season also saw a fourth place finish in the third tier of women’s football, an incredible achievement by Abbie and her team and testament to their skills and hard work.”
Joe Gorman, chief executive of Exeter City Football Club, added: "We are hugely grateful to Jen for her leadership and vision in helping to guide Exeter City Women through this key phase. Her work has been instrumental in setting the foundations for future success."
Exeter City Women were promoted to the third tier of women’s football - the FA Women’s National League Southern Premier Division – in 2024 and achieved an incredible fourth place finish in the league this season. Their final game of season, which was played at St James Park, saw a record crowd of 3,179 – on a par with attendances in the Women’s Super League and to cap off the season, manager Abbie Britton was named the Premier Division Manager of the Year.