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Eni Aluko and Ian Wright are regular pundits for England women’s matches - Shutterstock/Anna Gowthorpe
Eni Aluko has apologised to fellow pundit Ian Wright after appearing to suggest his presence risked blocking opportunities for women.
Aluko told BBC Radio Four’s Woman’s Hour on Wednesday that Wright needed to be aware of the “finite opportunities for women”.
Her comments have since come in for heavy criticism and on Friday she issued an apology to Wright via her Instagram Story.
“Ian Wright is a brilliant broadcaster and role model whose support for the women’s game has been significant,” she wrote.
“In my interview with Woman’s Hour this week, I was trying to make a broader point about the limited opportunities for women in football – whether that’s in coaching, broadcasting or commercial spaces – and the importance of creating more space for women to thrive on and off the pitch.
“But it was wrong for Ian’s name to be raised in that conversation, and for that I sincerely apologise. I’ve known and worked with Ian for many years and have nothing but love and respect for him.”
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Wright, 61, has been a strong advocate of the women’s game and anchored the Women’s Euro 2025 draw in Switzerland last December. In 2021, he spoke of being “embarrassed” about abuse faced by female pundits, including Alex Scott and Karen Carney, insisting they “deserve” their roles.
Aluko’s apology comes just a day after she denied “attacking” Wright in the interview.
“I’m sharing this full episode here again so people can actually listen to everything I said with full context,” she said, alongside a 78-second clip of the interview and a link to the full version on the BBC website.
“Contrary to clickbait media headlines no one was ‘attacked’ or ‘accused’ during this interview. There are lots of examples of men in women’s sport. Ian Wright is one. And as I said in the interview – Ian Wright is brilliant.”
Aluko had posted message on Instagram in response to the backlash before sharing her denial. Sharing a now-deleted post, her story referenced actor Chadwick Boseman taking a pay cut for his role in the film 21 Bridges in order for co-star Sienna Miller to receive equal pay. Aluko added a bullseye emoji, before removing the story.
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