Football has been a significant part of Cedella Marley's life, and it's no surprise considering her father's love for the sport. As the daughter of the global reggae icon Bob Marley, Cedella was surrounded by soccer balls throughout her upbringing. Bob Marley, a passionate soccer enthusiast, often mentioned that if he hadn't pursued music, he would have aspired to be a soccer player.
"Daddy played every day," says Marley, reminiscing about her father's passion for the game. "He would play anywhere he was: on the road, you'd find a field, you'd find a team. Sometimes it would be the photographers, other times it would be the journalists, and they would play against the band."
Growing up, Cedella also observed her brothers, Ziggy and Steve, playing football, which further fueled her own passion for the sport. She loved kicking a ball and embraced healthy competition, even when challenged by her brothers.
Cedella fondly recalls the advice she received from the legendary Brazilian footballer Pelé, who once told her, "The ball is round, and always take the penalty." This advice has stuck with her throughout her journey in football.
"To me, everything felt like a penalty," Marley chuckles. "I would always go for the goal, and that love for football is just ingrained in my DNA. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."
"Wait, Jamaica has a women's football team?"
Although Cedella Marley had a deep love for soccer from an early age, her involvement in the sport was limited to casual kickabouts with her father and brothers for many years.
However, everything changed in 2014 when her son brought home a flier from school, informing her that his soccer coach had asked him to deliver it. The flier revealed that Jamaica had a women's football team, something she had not been aware of until that moment.
In 2008, underfunding had forced the Jamaican Football Federation (JFF) to disband the women's national team program. The flier Marley received was a fundraising request from the JFF to revive the program. Without hesitation, Marley contacted the federation the next day to inquire about their needs.
She discovered that the team required support in multiple areas, ranging from travel and nutrition to accommodation and training camps.
Leveraging her musical talents as an accomplished musician and multiple Grammy award-winning artist with the band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, Marley and her family recorded a song called 'Strike Hard' to raise funds. They combined the royalties earned from the song, a GoFundMe page, and sponsorship through the Bob Marley Foundation to raise $300,000 in the first year.
Despite the women's team disbanding again in 2016, Marley remained unwavering in her commitment to the program. Her dedication, along with the efforts of many others, led to a significant milestone in 2019 when Jamaica's women's national team became the first Caribbean country to qualify for a Women's World Cup.
Marley's tireless work has not only improved standards and conditions for players but also transformed the country's attitude towards the women's national team. The team members, who had previously been told that women's football in Jamaica was unimportant, now witness a shift in perception as their achievements gain recognition and support.
"This makes me excited to see how all of that has changed drastically, not just for our women, but around the world," Marley says with enthusiasm.
'Warrior Mode'
Marley is currently speaking from Jamaica's pre-World Cup training camp in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, which has been meticulously organized by Ajax and Adidas. The facilities provided are nothing short of "amazing," with every aspect catered to meet the players' needs.
The Friendship Sports Centre, where the team is training, boasts top-notch amenities, including first-class training pitches, a well-equipped gym, a swimming pool, and a basketball court. Marley reflects on the past when training facilities were often limited to dark rooms in basements, highlighting the significant progress made in providing better training environments for the players.
Eleven players from the last World Cup squad have made it to the current team for the upcoming tournament in Australia and New Zealand. With added experience, expectations are higher this time around.
During the 2019 World Cup in France, Jamaica was drawn into a challenging group that included Italy, Australia, and Brazil. Although they faced tough competition, the 'Reggae Girlz' made history by scoring their country's first-ever goal in a Women's World Cup when Havana Solaun found the net in a match against Australia, despite a 4-1 defeat.
This year's squad boasts several players who are performing at the highest level in various leagues around the world. The Manchester City striker, Khadija 'Bunny' Shaw, stands out as a key player, having scored an impressive 20 goals and provided seven assists during the Women's Super League campaign last season.
The abundance of talented players available to Jamaica's national women's team can be attributed, in part, to former head coach Hue Menzies. When the country's women's league was disbanded in 2015 and the national team went dormant, Menzies displayed foresight by sending the country's brightest prospects to schools in the United States.
Over the past four years, the individual and collective growth within the squad has instilled renewed confidence that they can build upon their performances from the 2019 World Cup in France.
"We want to go out there and we want to win," Marley asserts confidently. This time, Jamaica has been drawn against Brazil, France, and Panama. While qualifying for the knockout stages will be challenging, the team believes that they have a real possibility of achieving a historic first Women's World Cup win.
The preparation for the upcoming tournament, however, has not been without challenges. Last month, many members of the first-team squad expressed their "utmost disappointment" in what they described as "subpar" conditions during their World Cup preparations in an open letter to the Jamaican Football Federation (JFF). The letter also raised concerns about the JFF's failure to deliver on "contractually agreed upon compensation."
The JFF acknowledged on its website that there have been imperfections but assured that they are diligently working to resolve the players' concerns. JFF president Michael Ricketts stated that the federation is committed to providing as much support as possible for the team.
Chinyelu Asher, a former player for Jamaica's national team, emphasized that the purpose of the statement was to hold the federation accountable and ensure they take the women's team seriously. While the team now has a contractual agreement with the national federation, they felt the need to release a public statement to ensure they receive the best possible support for the World Cup.
Marley admits that she has not been in contact with the federation since the players' open letter. Instead, she chooses to focus solely on how she can directly help the women's team. Even when she first got involved with the squad in 2014, Marley had little contact with the JFF. Her priority is understanding and addressing the needs of the female team, rather than concerning herself with matters that don't directly involve her.
She emphasizes that she has direct conversations with the players to assess how she can assist them. While she hopes the federation has listened to the players' concerns, Marley acknowledges that the issues faced by the Jamaican federation are not unique and cites the ongoing dispute between England's Lionesses and their FA over bonus payments as an example.
One of Marley's most significant accomplishments in soccer is the establishment of her 'Football is Freedom' initiative. The name is inspired by one of her father's famous quotes. Launched in October 2021 with a week-long training camp in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the initiative initially provided training facilities for the women's national teams of Jamaica and Costa Rica ahead of a friendly match.
Since then, 'Football is Freedom' has expanded its scope. In February of the following year, on what would have been Bob Marley's 77th birthday, the initiative hosted its first girls' soccer clinic in Jamaica, focusing on developing young women both as players and individuals. Marley's initiative aims to help these girls develop life skills, providing them with mentorship and opportunities for higher education.
"I've taken everything that I've learned over the last nine years and applied it to building what I hope is a better future, not only for my country but for an initiative that the world will hopefully adopt," Marley explains.
"We're starting from the grassroots level in Jamaica right now... and we're giving every girl a chance to become a game-changer, not just on the pitch, but in their homes, in their communities, and in life, in general," Marley shares passionately.
She admits that when she was younger, she didn't fully understand her father's quote, but now it deeply resonates with her, especially after the transformative journey she has embarked on over the past nine years. "It's like I'm living it," she adds.
Marley believes that soccer can offer a way out for girls living in challenging communities in Jamaica. She has witnessed players from such backgrounds earn scholarships, and the success of the 'Football is Freedom' initiative has attracted partnerships with Adidas and Common Goal.
Having seen the natural talent of some of these girls, she firmly believes that soccer can be a life-changing opportunity for them, but they require the right support and structure. Marley feels fortunate for the progress so far but acknowledges that achieving her goals is not easy. She emphasizes that it will take a collective effort of like-minded individuals who believe in bringing about a change in people's mindsets to make a real difference.
Thus, she reaches out to those who share her vision and believes that, in some small way, they can contribute to providing these girls with every possible opportunity they deserve. Every opportunity counts, and Marley is dedicated to making a positive impact on their lives.
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