FA marketing manager and Fulham's Megalie Mendes ready for Adobe Women's FA Cup tie

For someone who spends her day job helping to build the brand of England women’s teams, Megalie Mendes will be on the same stage herself when Fulham host London City Lionesses in the Adobe Women’s FA Cup, live on the BBC and YouTube.

Mendes, who works for the FA as a senior marketing manager for the women’s national teams, is Fulham’s vice-captain and one of their longest-serving players having spent almost six years with the club.

And she’s now preparing to face the Barclays Women’s Championship side at Craven Cottage in the women’s game’s biggest knockout competition, after an incredible run which has already seen them beat two teams from higher leagues.

“We’ve played and deservedly beaten two teams who were a league above us,” she said.

“It’s always nice to beat teams that are higher up, and proves that we would be able to go and play in that league if we got promoted.

“And getting to the fourth round is the furthest we’ve got in this era of the Fulham women’s team, since the club was disbanded and re-formed.

“So there’s a real element of pride in that, as well as progress because we can see how far we’ve grown so it’s all positive.”

With over 100 appearances for Fulham now under her belt, the defender has been reflecting on her own journey to this stage both on and off the pitch.

Born in South Africa in a Portuguese family and growing up in Johannesburg, Megalie’s search for football had taken her far and wide until her arrival in London in 2019.

 

“Even though I was born in South Africa, I did grow up in a very Portuguese and European culture at home and we’d visit my grandparents in Portugal every year,” she explains.

“I have an older brother, and I used to play football in the garden with him, so that’s how I first started kicking a ball and was introduced to it.

“But football wasn’t really big in South Africa, so in school it would be hockey and netball and the only football I played was a bit of five-a-side with my brother and his friends every now and again.

“I’d always wanted to play it more, but we didn’t really have access to it so I stuck with other sports throughout school and university and would play football once or twice a year.

“It was when I went to study in Barcelona that I knew I had to try and play more regularly, so I played Futsal for a year when I was there before moving back to South Africa to start work.

“I then decided to move to the UK, as I’d always wanted to live and work here. Of course, football is the biggest sport too, so I knew there’d be a good infrastructure and once I got here, I went searching for some clubs in London.

“But I was living in Fulham at the time and the club was five minutes away and when I went there, they signed me after a trial and I’ve been there ever since.

“My situation is pretty unique, but it’s my passion and whether I come to work or go and play football, I just love it and really enjoy both aspects. Football is life!

 

“If you’d have told me, the girl growing up in South Africa with no access to football, that I’d be playing for Fulham and working for the FA, I would’ve said you’re crazy!”

With London City Lionesses sitting three levels above fifth-tier Fulham, who play in the London & South East Regional Women’s League, Mendes and her teammates are under no illusions about the size of the challenge they face on Sunday.

“When you see that they have about 12 internationals and a couple of them are WU23 Lionesses, I knew straight away that it’s going to be tough for us,” added Mendes, who will be cheered on at Craven Cottage by her brother and two-year-old niece.

“We’ll have to be sharp for the full game, we can’t lose any concentration as they’re so good - they’re a professional team who train every day whereas most of us have full-time jobs and only have two sessions a week.

“We know there’s a big gap between us but we’re going to put on a good a battle and work hard for one another.

“It’s definitely going to be a team-bonding experience too, but we know they’re going to be really strong and it’s up to us to try and match that."