A talented Bracknell woman has landed one of the top jobs at FIFA, analysing data about professional footballers at the 2022 World Cup.

Hannah Wheelen, who is currently completing her Masters in Sport Performance Analysis at Middlesex University first applied when a temporary analyst position came up at FIFA.

Despite her lack of coding experience, she soon was chosen as one of just three women in the 25-strong team employed full-time to help collect sophisticated data which aims to develop all levels of football through technology.

Hannah said: “The role was really eye-opening, it was a whole side of analysis I didn’t know existed.

“I just thought it would be in the clubs and teams themselves rather than the over-arching role that FIFA has in football. To work with such a big team was a great experience.

"I am very grateful for the opportunity that Middlesex has provided.”

Middlesex University and their MSc in Sport Performance Analysis course has a strong connection with FIFA. It demonstrates that it produces students with the right skillsets to gain employment within this calibre of organisation.

They have current students and graduates involved from the past three years of the MSc course involved with the analytic team.

The new FIFA department is being headed up by project leader Chris Loxston, and falls under former long-serving Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger’s role as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development.

Mr Loxston said the project and Mr Wenger’s aim is to combine 'football data analytics and technical expertise' and he described it as an 'exciting, high-level project that we hope will set a standard within the industry moving forward.'

With women severely under-represented in football analysis, Hannah says that one of the possible reasons could be imposter syndrome.

She explains: “In this day and age it isn’t necessarily a case of companies choosing men over women, I think that it is women not having the confidence in their ability to actually go for these positions.

“I struggled with that a little bit when I was there because I knew I didn’t have the best football knowledge so that was a bit of a challenge for me to get my head around.

“I think the worry of not being able to keep up is what holds people back.”