Humans Of The Islands - Sarai Bareman

Sarai Bareman

FIFA's first appointed Chief Women's Football Officer

Dutch / Samoan

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I was born and raised in New Zealand. My mother is full Samoan and my father is Dutch, he’s from the Netherlands. I am the second eldest in my family, I have three brothers and I’m the only girl. So you can say that I grew up as a bit of a tomboy. We had a strong sporting influence in my family. My father has been a coach since I was young, my mother has always been a (club) manager and she was also an aerobics instructor so we have a very active family and upbringing.I grew up in West Auckland and that’s where I started my football journey as well. My club that I played for was Waitakere city, so I’ve been around Auckland a little bit with my football playing, but I’m truly a westie at heart.

And were you raised in much of your Samoan culture and traditions?

Actually when we were raised in New Zealand we weren’t exposed much at all to our Samoan side. The most that we saw on the Samoan side was when we had a fa’alavelave, usually a wedding or a funeral or a birthday. But growing up, we were very much kiwi kids. We didn’t speak much Samoan at home. So for me, when I moved to Samoa in 2008 and started working in the football federation there, that was quite an experience for me culturally. Getting to know my roots and where my mother was born and understanding where I’m from.

Did you ever think that a European sport would take you back home to your roots in the Pacific?

No I could never have imagined it. Even now, today, the journey that I’ve been on, I still pinch myself sometimes thinking about it. And I’m so grateful that that journey home to Samoa for me, opened up so many doors and it’s something that I could never have planned out. So I’ve been very lucky in that sense but also I feel very strong ties back to Samoa because of that.

How long did you spend there?

I was there for six years. So when I first arrived in the country I was a true palagi. I spoke very little of the language and I was definitely looked at as an outsider. So that made it quite tough. But over the years and through my work, I was able to start to break down some of those barriers and the perception I guess, of being different.

It was difficult but I also feel it was perfect timing because I was involved in rebuilding the federation and rebuilding the sport after a very difficult period. It meant that I was able to see quite clearly where the pitfalls were, where we had gone wrong in the past and how we could avoid those. But also, it built my own passion for the game and for Samoa and for the development of football there. For me, the reward was in seeing kids playing in leagues, teams, referees, activity happening - it was for me, the greatest part of the role, being able to see the fruits of my labour.

How did you get into the sport? I note that many Islanders play sports like rugby or netball and soccer isn’t as popular. Did your father coach soccer?

Actually my family, like New Zealand families, was a rugby family. So I grew up from the age of 5, running around on the rugby field with my brothers. I actually switched to Football when I was in high-school. I was influenced by a group of friends and I decided to give it a go and I made it into the First XI and ended up Captaining that team - I never looked back after that. Football is definitely the sport for me, I love it and it’s something that I hope to influence more Pacific Islanders in to playing. I’m hoping to see a lot more Tim Cahill’s in the future coming out of the likes of Samoa, Tonga and the Pacific region.  

You were the only female member of FIFA’s Reform committee for this year and with Soccer traditionally being a male dominated sport, I’m guessing that over the years you’ve experienced being that gender minority.  But here on the board, in the Reform committee, you were the ONLY woman on the entire committee. What was that experience like?

That was a very challenging experience for me. Not only was FIFA going through a very tough time of turmoil, there was a lot on the shoulders of that committee who basically, the world was looking upon to turn around the organisation to rebuild FIFA and it’s brand. As the only woman in that room, I felt a heavy burden to represent women and the views of women within that room. But in saying that it was an amazing opportunity and I relish the experience that I had there because it really helped me to understand more what the challenges are for women in football not only on the field but also in the administration from a global perspective. I was able to learn that the challenges that I have faced and that many of our pacific women face in our region are not unique, they do happen all over the world.

I know that you had pushed for concrete requirements for women in leadership positions at FIFA and the organisation actually backed you unanimously and it’s putting those recommendations into play now. Does the thought of that overwhelm you?  You know, a polynesian woman making policy changes in a huge international sport - especially considering it’s not one that many Pacific people love to play?

At times I do consider it to be overwhelming, but I also think that at the same time it was only a matter of time and there’s so many bodies of research and academic bodies that are out there, which I actually referred to many times during my arguments, where there is clear success in companies and organisations that have a higher representation of women in their decision making bodies. And it shows in the profit margin of corporate companies but also in the success and the turnover of staff is much lower - where women are involved at the highest level in making decisions and really part of the strategic direction of an organisation. There are only positive things that can come of that. And for me FIFA embracing that and me being part of driving that change is an amazing amazing experience.

There are a lot of young girls who will be looking at your life and the changes that you’ve made, the rights for women that you’ve been championing. And now you’ve been appointed the first Chief Women’s Football Officer so you’ll be heading up the new football women’s division. Are you more aware now that young women will be looking up to you because of your role and your influence in the field?

Yes, it’s something that I’m much more aware of now. I expected that there’d be some media coverage and a few people might acknowledge my appointment into my new position but what actually happened was far beyond my expectations. I had many people reach out to me, organisations, media and some really touching messages. One of them that I think had the biggest impact on me, an ex-teacher of mine who’s still teaching at the high-school I went to, Massey High-school, reaching out to me and congratulating me - and she asked me if I could say some words for the school newsletter for the students at the school and I think that’s when it really hit me that I am in a position where I am inspiring a lot of young girls and what I do and what I say can have a great impact on these young girls. So that’s something that I will always carry with me and it’s also something that will always keep me grounded.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned so far in your life?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is not to allow adversity or tough situations to stop me or bring me down from doing what I feel passionate about. Be strong in yourself and be convicted and passionate about what you do and when someone comes against you, or you come up against a barrier, not to allow that to stop you, but actually use it as a way to motivate and fuel your passion, so that you can keep going.

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By Indira Stewart

 

Suggested Links:

Humans of the Islands - John Mateialona Maumau-Pinoni 

Humans of the Islands - Paeariki Johnson