Jacqui Oatley

Jacqui Oatley MBE is a trailblazing sports broadcaster, event host and keynote speaker renowned for breaking barriers in football commentary and championing diversity in sport. She made history in 2007 as the first female commentator on BBC's Match of the Day and has since covered 15 major international tournaments, including commentating for Fox Sports at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Now working for TNT Sports UK and covering matches across the Premier League, Champions League and Women's Super League, she was awarded an MBE in 2016 for her contribution to broadcasting and became a founding board member of Women in Football. Through her keynote presentations, Jacqui empowers organisations to challenge outdated thinking and create inclusive environments, sharing practical insights on resilience, self-belief and the courage required to pursue ambitious goals in male-dominated industries.

In 2007, Jacqui Oatley MBE walked into the commentary box at Craven Cottage and made history as the first female football commentator on BBC's Match of the Day, calling Fulham's clash with Blackburn Rovers to millions of viewers and changing the landscape of sports broadcasting forever. That milestone marked the beginning of a career that has seen her become one of football's most respected voices, covering 15 major international tournaments across men's and women's competitions, from Euros and World Cups to Olympic Games. Now commentating for TNT Sports UK on Premier League, Champions League and Women's Super League fixtures, and for Fox Sports throughout the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada, Jacqui continues to break new ground. In 2022, she became the first woman to call a men's FIFA World Cup match for a US network when she worked for Fox Sports in Qatar, and in 2025 she commentated on Chloe Kelly's winning penalty kick in the Euro final, capturing one of the defining moments in women's football history.

Jacqui's broadcasting expertise extends far beyond the commentary box. A graduate of the University of Leeds where she studied German, she regularly commentates on NWSL coverage for CBS in the United States and anchors ITV Sport's live darts coverage, a role she held for over a decade. She previously hosted Sky Sports' Sunday Supplement, where she moderated high-profile football debate among leading journalists, and has conducted interviews with some of the most significant names in sport. Her ability to lead engaging discussions, manage differing viewpoints and deliver authority and energy to live events has made her a sought-after moderator and event host. Beyond her broadcasting work, Jacqui has championed diversity and inclusion throughout her career, becoming a founding board member of Women in Football in 2007. Her contribution to broadcasting and to advancing opportunities for women in sport was recognised in 2016 when she was awarded an MBE.

As a keynote speaker, Jacqui offers audiences a powerful and deeply personal account of what it takes to pursue ambitious goals in male-dominated industries. She shares how she left a secure career in her late twenties to retrain from scratch, working her way up from work experience and overnight radio shifts to front-page headlines and international recognition. Her story resonates across sectors, addressing universal themes of leadership, resilience, self-belief and the courage required to challenge outdated thinking. Jacqui helps organisations understand the practical steps needed to drive meaningful change, create inclusive environments and build cultures where talent thrives regardless of gender. Audiences leave with actionable insights on perseverance, confidence and barrier-breaking that they can apply immediately to their own professional challenges, making her speaking engagements both inspiring and transformative.