Last year, just a few weeks after becoming president of the Norwegian Football Federation, Lise Kravenes decided to start speaking the quieter parts out loud.
Rising from his seat at the FIFA annual meeting in Qatar, Klavenes deliberately strode onto the dais, where for the better part of an hour officials made little more than perfunctory comments about the men’s World Cup in the Gulf nation later that year. There was talk of procedural issues and an update on financial details.
Clayvenes, one of the few women in football’s leadership, had a different theme in mind. On issues that have long haunted football’s global governing body, FIFA, she spoke on ethical issues, migrant workers and women’s and gay rights. She spoke of the responsibility of the (mostly male) officials at the venue to ensure that football holds higher moral and ethical standards when football chooses coaches and venues for its biggest competitions.
By the time Kravenes finished about five minutes later, she challenged FIFA itself in typical direct style.
But she also made herself a target.
As soon as she returned to her seat, Honduran officials asked her to speak. He told Klavenes bluntly that the FIFA Congress was “not the right place or the right time” to make such a statement. Minutes later, she was attacked by the head of Qatar’s World Cup organizing committee, who told her she should “educate herself” before speaking out.
“Since that speech in Doha, so many people and powerful people have wanted to tell me to calm down,” she said, explaining that at several high-profile meetings she and the Norwegian Federation were criticized in a roundabout and open manner, which she claimed was a calculated attempt to silence her.
Far from being intimidated, Klavenes, who played for the Norwegian national team before becoming a lawyer and judge, continued to speak out and challenge football’s orthodoxy that sensitive issues should be kept private.
“Politically, it exposed me a little bit, so maybe people want to ask me, ‘Who do you think you are? She said there is a “cost” to openly questioning human rights and good governance.
She also believes her position reflects that of the Federation and the country. And she says she won’t stop putting pressure on them. “I’m very motivated,” she said. “If I lose motivation, I will quit. I have nothing to lose.”
Kravenes’ style is a far cry from the conservative traditions of football and has been questioned by some of her closest allies.
Dutch Football Federation secretary general Gis de Jong said Kravenes’ speech in Qatar was “probably not the most strategic as it was very confrontational”. De Jong, who has worked closely with Craveness over the past two years, said he shares many of the same frustrations, particularly with FIFA’s track record of upholding its human rights commitments.
But he suggested that a more diplomatic approach would yield results, while acknowledging that football could afford to face some difficult issues.
“I’ve learned over the last six or seven years that you have to stay connected,” he said. “And the risk of making such a confrontational speech is losing ties with the rest of the world. I think that’s the danger of this approach.”
Klavenes said other football coaches have told him “at least 1,000 times not to exaggerate.” They encouraged her to speak in what she describes as her “indoor voice,” to be more diplomatic, and to do her job differently. But “if you have evidence that it hasn’t changed in 100 years,” that’s difficult, she says.
“I think she is very popular in Norway because she never hides, never lies and speaks a language that everyone can understand,” said Norwegian men’s coach Stare Solbakken. “I also think football needs a voice that can brave the male world of football.”
Earlier this year, Ms Kravenes decided to re-challenge the convention of running against male candidates in elections for seats on the governing body of UEFA, the governing body of European football, rather than trying to win the single seat given to women. She was utterly devastated, but afterward she wanted to see something positive from the votes she received, collecting 18 votes from 55 European countries.
“I see a third of UEFA presidents wanting change, 18 of whom voted in favor of this,” she said. She said her priorities still face significant resistance from football’s top leaders. “But a lot of people are reaching out under it.”
The world of football is still permeated with what Craveness described as a “culture of fear” that keeps officials from speaking out, knowing that they may be ostracized and lose their prestigious and often highly paid roles. For Craveness, the conversation remains a valuable one.
For example, the plight of Qatar’s migrant workers remains a concern. FIFA pledged in March to investigate whether it has continued responsibility in cracking down on football projects if it violates human rights rules. European officials asked Kravenes and De Jong to join a FIFA commission on the issue, but months passed without any confirmation on how the commission would operate, Kravenes said. Letters and messages asking for updates are met with the now-familiar reply: “Please contact me again.”
Klavenes rejects the notion that any of the positions she has taken have made her an activist, as some have argued, or undermined her role as a football coach, and will no doubt come under heavy scrutiny if the Norwegian national team continues to struggle on the field.
The Norwegian men’s team, blessed with a generation of talented players such as Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard, were unable to participate in the Qatar World Cup protests after failing to qualify. The women’s side, led by former world best player Ada Hegerberg, suffered a crushing 8-0 defeat to England at last year’s European Championship and lost to New Zealand, who had never won a tournament, in the World Cup opener last week.
Rather than distract her, Klavenes said the issues and platforms she’s championed by Norwegian federations and teams are directly related to the game, especially when it comes to issues of inclusivity.
She said she was trying to set an example for other football leaders to show them that they could be more than the world expected, rather than the throngs of men in suits that filled hotel lounges and conference halls every time FIFA came to town.
She was traveling to New Zealand with her wife and three young children under the age of 10 and told other officials in the Norwegian mission that she could bring her family along.
“This is a big problem for me and for the Norwegian federation,” she said, explaining how the travel obligations that come with leadership roles in football make it difficult to recruit women and “makes it easier for people to say they don’t want the job.”
Craveness, whose term as federation president expires in March 2026, knows his time is limited. She said she will not hold onto that role in order to remain in football. But she will continue to raise her voice while she is there. And it continued this week.
The current focus is on the Women’s World Cup prize money. Prior to the tournament, FIFA announced that participating players would be guaranteed 30% of the $110 million prize pool, with a minimum of $30,000 per player. Some national federations, including England’s federation, appear to be using FIFA’s proposal as a cover to withhold additional bonus payments. And last week, FIFA president Gianni Infantino rejected assurances that the money would eventually reach the players. He said the money would be paid to each federation according to FIFA rules, suggesting the proposed bonus was a recommendation and not a guarantee.
“He could and should have made it clear that it was a mandatory payment,” Craveness said. “Why do you say it’s not that simple?”
